Home Again
by Evaline
Summary: Post-post Chosen. Well, three plus months post. Starting directly after the finale of my story After The End, Spike is back amongst the Scoobies once more. But will it be for good? (filled with an obscene amount of spuffy)NOW COMPLETE(Heart and Soul next)
1. Real

AN: Sorry this took so long to get up-I've been having problems posting.*sigh* Doesn't that feel better, now? I told you I'd been building up to something (for anyone who randomly stumbled into this story; I'm referring to the finale of the previous story, After The End). This will be picking up immediately after the closing lines of Always Slowly. Read and review, as always, and tell me if you like!

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss

Real

            Everything else faded away, and all that was left was her. He blinked, feeling her in his arms. Her face against his. Her soft breath, tickling his skin. Every bit of her. 

            She tried to speak, tried to ask him _how?_ But no words came out. Her mouth sat slightly agape, with no words to fill it. She lifted one of her arms from his neck, bringing it around to run her palm along his cheek. She closed her eyes. Leather and cigarette smoke filled her senses like a strong musk. _Spike._

            "Spike?"

            Slowly, he tore his gaze from Buffy's astonished face. Dawn wore the crazy grin only she could possess upon seeing one of her friends whom she'd thought to be dead. Reluctantly, he loosened his grip on Buffy to give the teenager a well-deserved hug. Over her shoulder, he still watched Buffy. She stared at him, as if she was seeing a ghost. 

            "How?" She whispered, sounding for the entire world like a small child. He reached out to her, gently. She stepped closer, nestling herself against his chest.

 He couldn't contain his smile as he held the girls. "Bit of a long story, love." 

"Come inside." Dawn grabbed one of his hands, leading the group slowly back up the driveway. 

They followed her, never averting their eyes from one another. She was scared of looking away, sure that if she did he would disappear. _His eyes are bluer that I remember._ She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. 

They sat down in the living room, content with the silence that surrounded them. Buffy broke their stare, turning to Dawn. "It's late."

Dawn nodded slowly.

"You should…probably….go to bed." She sighed, feeling him sitting beside her.

Dawn frowned, looking over at Spike desperately. 

"'S alright, pet," he murmured. "I'm not going anywhere."

She smiled, casting a suspicious glance at her sister before going up the stairs.

Buffy let her breath out slowly. She turned back around to Spike, confused. Reaching out delicately, she let her fingers run slowly over his face. He smiled. "You're dead."

His smile broadened. "Not like that's anything new." His forehead wrinkled with concern as the tears she'd been holding in so long streamed down her cheeks. "Buffy?"

She looked up at him. Laughing nervously, she whipped the tears away hurriedly. "You can't just show up here, Spike."

His face fell. Swallowing hard, he wrung his hands. "I know." He jerked with surprise as her lips caressed his. 

Buffy smiled a little as she drew back again. "Should have called first."

"My apologies," he snarked as she wound her fingers in his. He brushed some hair out of her face absent-mindedly. 

She caught his other hand in hers, fear reflecting in her eyes. "Your real, right?" She bit her tongue. "I don't think I could stand such a horrible dream."

He raised an eyebrow, scooting closer to her. "I'm real." Squeezing her hand, he ran his thumb over the back of her hand. "Promise." 

She smiled. Standing, she led him down the hall. "We have a spare bedroom over here."

"Oh." Spike gulped, trying to hide his disappointment. "Right then. So I'll be seeing you in the morning."

She turned around, frowning. "No." They walked into the bedroom, Buffy closing the door behind them. She sat down on the edge of the bed. "Come here."

He happily obliged, sitting beside her. They stared at each other for a few minutes, just basking. Slowly, she crawled up and under the covers. Unsure of what to do, he watched her.

"Come on," She whispered, reaching out towards him. Kicking off his boots and laying his duster on the bedpost, he slid under the covers with her. She spooned up against him.

He shivered as he felt her silent tears sink through his shirt onto his chest. Wrapping his arms around her, he ran his fingers through her hair. "Don't worry, love. 'm not leaving," he whispered. He kissed her hair gently. "I'm never leaving." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            The sun streamed in the open window, casting a shadow on Buffy's face. Slowly, she opened her eyes. She smiled as she felt the arm slung protectively over her waist. _Real._ She looked over at the window again, gasping. Jumping out of bed, she ran to close the blinds.

            "Buffy?" Spike mumbled sleepily, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. 

            She paused at the window, looking back at him. The sunlight danced in his confused eyes. 

            "What?"

            She looked back and forth between the window and the vampire. "Huh?"

            Spike grinned. He beckoned her back over to the bed. "Forgot to mention that, did I?" 

            She ran her fingers through his mussed curls, standing in front of him. "You aren't poofing."

            "Nope." He caught her wrists in his hands, pulling her down closer to him so he could look into her eyes. _God Buffy, do you even know how much I missed you?_

            "How." She sat down next to him, tucking her legs up underneath her slim frame.

            "How am I not poofing?"

            "How are you here." Buffy cocked her head, trying to memorize every curve of his face. "I thought you were gone."

            "I was." Inside, he debated with himself. _Does this count as part of the stuff I'm not supposed to tell her? No,_ he rationalized, _I only can't tell her the specific reason why I came back._ "Old Spike went to that bright place in the sky."

            Her eyes widened as she absorbed this information. "You were in…"

            He smiled sadly at her. "Yeah." He winced as she turned away slightly. 

            "Why did you come back?"

            "You." It was out before he could even process the question. _Well, at least I didn't elaborate._

            She glanced at him with a look about her he couldn't distinguish. _Disgust? Sympathy?_ "Spike…"         

            "No." He stood up, standing ironically enough right in front of the window. "I didn't come back here for your pity, Buffy. I chose this." He smiled involuntarily. "I'd rather be here, with you. And don't go brushing it off like you always do because-" He smirked. "-darn it all, I was starting to believe what you said in the cave." 

            _After all this time, you never even knew? _She shook with the blindest pain and range imaginable. He seemed to notice, for he took another step back. "Starting?" Shocked at the waver in her voice, she continued. "You thought I didn't mean it." 

            He flinched as he realized his words had scalded her. "No, pet. I knew, even if you didn't."

            Buffy scowled, not understanding what he meant. "What is that supposed to even mean?"

            He approached her so they were less than an inch from touching. Dropping to his knees, he tried to draw her out from the deep crevice of her mind she had retreated to. "I was starting to believe that you knew you loved me." He smiled again, ignoring how she jerked away as his fingers brushed her cheek. "But even before that, I knew. You certainly didn't hate me that last night, did you?" 

            Slowly, she lifted her line of vision to cross with his. "No," she whispered, mostly to herself. _I loved you. I loved you so much I thought I'd die. So why can't I just tell you that?_ "I…-"

            _Knock knock knock_

            "Bloody hell," Spike muttered, as he looked over his shoulder in the general direction of the front door. 

            Sighing, Buffy stood up and walked out of the room. She walked over to the door, pulling it open when she saw Willow and Kennedy in the window. "Hey."

            "Oh, hi." Willow waved as they stepped inside. "We just got back. Paradise isn't as much of a Paradise as we thought."

            "What did you run into?" Buffy crossed her arms, looking back and forth between the two. 

            Kennedy shrugged. "Vamps, mostly. Chased a demon around for awhile, but he got away."

            Spike stepped into the doorframe, leaning against it while watching their company. _'Ello there, Red._ He smirked.

            "Did you get a good look at him?" Buffy started walking towards the bookshelf.

            "I…" Willow's eyes grew wide as she noticed someone standing in the far bedroom. He was standing in the shadows, so she could only make out the general shape of him. "Buffy…."

            "Hmm?" She turned back around.

            Willow cocked her head. "There's someone in the bedroom."

            Kennedy peered around her to get a look into the bedroom. 

            "'Hey there, girlies."

            Willow let out a small shriek at the British voice, jumping. Then she blinked a few times, in disbelief. "Spike?" It was hard to recognize him-instead of his trademark duster and bleach blond hair he had a thick sweater and overgrown, unkept brown curls. Still, it was Spike.

            He smiled a little, stepping out into the shadow in the living room. _Old habits die hard, I guess._ He let himself relish in the fact that Buffy subconsciously stepped closer to him before turning his eyes back to Willow and Kennedy. "Long time."

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Come on. It's my first chapter. You know I'll cry if you don't review it. :) 


	2. Nothing But Love

AN: I don't know what's up with fanfic, but posting has become a bit of a, well, challenge. If this gets up though, obviously, the problem has been sussed out. I understand some of you didn't quite think the finale was as great as it could have been, but just remember that the way I built it, more was supposed to come out the longer this continues. I have obligated myself to keeping this story PG-13, but (forewarning) the chapter after this is a *request only* chapter. That means it is R/above 17 material (hint hint over 17 to read). No worries, you who will be too young to enjoy, it will not have too much to do with plot progression. If there is any, I'll make sure the characters bring it up later. If you want me to email you the chapter (once it's finished, of course) just indicate so in a review. 

Disclaimer: All characters belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss. 

Nothing But Love

            "Spike?" Giles stepped through the door, looking around for the vampire he'd believed to be gone.

            " 'lo." He nodded to him, a wry smile upon his face.      

            "Good lord. How-how did this…occur?"

            "That's what we've been trying to get out of him for the past hour," Willow sighed from her seat on the sofa. She reached over, taking Kennedy's hand in hers. "He won't tell us anything."

            Spike smiled at the pout Red wore. _And I don't bloody plan to, either._ He turned his attention to the Slayer sitting at his side. "Buffy?"

            Her head snapped up as if he had woken her from a bad dream. She looked around dazedly, letting her focus rest on the Watcher. "Hey, Giles." She tried to ignore the way Spike was watching her. 

_What's the matter with you? He's back; that's what you wanted, isn't it?_

_Yes,_ another voice in her head argued, _I wanted him back. Needed him back._

_ Needed him? _The original said. _You're the Slayer. _

_I'm a Slayer. No 'the'. _

_You aren't supposed to need anything._ _It's a weakness. Bad Buffy._

_ I love him. _

_You missed him._

_And why do you think I missed him?_

_Weakness Buffy, he'll hurt you…_

He'll hurt you… 

She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. No use. She was trapped in a cloud of confusion. And those eyes were bearing down on her so hard. Try as she might, she couldn't raise herself to meet them. 

"Buffy? Buffy?" Giles stood in front of her, finally bending to tap her on the shoulder.

"Huh?"

He sighed. "I was asking if you knew how this could have happened."

She shook her head slowly. "No. Don't know. He was just…there." She blinked a few times.

Realizing it was fruitless, Giles turned his efforts on Spike. "You don't remember anything? You don't recall being anywhere?" 

Spike barely heard what he was saying. She wouldn't look at him. _Why won't you look at me?_ He rested his arms on his thighs, watching her avoid his gaze. _Buffy?_

"Giles, I think…." Willow beckoned him over to where they sat. "I think maybe they need some time….alone. They both seem kinda…" She looked over, scrutinizing them. "Wonky." 

He glanced back at them worriedly. "I suppose that might be best." He straightened. "Will you be staying?"

"I think we're going to go." Willow offered him a friendly smile. "I'm sure they'll be fine, though."

"That's what I'm afraid of," Giles muttered under his breath as he turned to leave. "Buffy?"

She raised her eyebrows, studying the carpet with an intensity that scared him. "Hmm."

"I'll be leaving now, if you don't need me."

She nodded, blinking a few times. "Okay. See ya." _He loves me. I love him. Why is it so hard?_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Yeah…" Buffy sighed, pacing around the room and trying not to trip over the phone cord. "I know. Tomorrow. Okay….I'll be fine….Yes…I'm sure, Xander." She bit her tongue as he winced at the name. "Okay. Goodbye." Slowly, she hung up. The house was empty. Dawn was at school. Everyone had gone. It was just them. 

            He cleared his throat uncertainly. "Don't you have work, love?" _Please Buffy, don't get cold now._

            "No. I took today off."

            "Why."

            She sighed. "Don't."

            He stood up, walking over to her. She didn't protest as he ran a hand up her arm. _She didn't encourage it either, though. _"What's wrong?"

            She looked up into his eyes. _Why do you love me? Why is there nothing but love and trust in your eyes?_ "I…"

            "Tell me." He braced himself, ready for whatever she threw at him. "Just bloody tell me."

            "I…I don't think…I can do this." Her voice was so low it was barely audible. 

            He held his breath, trying not to show the pain she caused. "Why, Buffy."

            She dropped her head. Taking his hand in hers, she lightly traced all the lines in his palm. "I just can't."

            "No." He jerked away, shocking both her and himself. "There's more to it than that. I know it." He stepped closer, daring her to back up. "And I don't want to hurt you. But, dammit Buffy, what is it you're not telling me?"

            She bit her tongue, looking away.

"Tell me!" Spike grabbed her by the shoulders, ready to shake her if that's what he had to do to get the truth out.

Buffy pulled away, rubbing her arms. "It hurt," she whimpered. The tears glistened as she swallowed her fear. He looked so confused. So lost. _Too late now, Buffy. _ "It hurt so bad I didn't think I'd survive. I don't even think I did." She cocked her head at that realization. "It was…beyond pain. It was nothing. Even with Riley, with Angel…" Her voice trailed off. "I was still me. Still Buffy. They never took any part of me away when they left." She looked back to him. "You did." 

            He didn't know what to say. Nothing could have prepared him for such a startling confession. _But you didn't say you needed me, Buffy. _He pressed himself tighter against her lithe body. "And?"      

            She didn't say anything for the longest time. She didn't know what to say. Or, more importantly, how to say it. "I…I can't, Spike. I couldn't bear to loose you again. It would hurt too much."

            "You know I'd never hurt you." He lowered his face so their lips were a fraction of an inch apart. He could feel her heavy breathing, her pounding heart.

            "I never said you'd mean to," she whispered. _So close, but still so far away._ She closed her eyes.

            Spike let his fingers trail up her neck. Gently, he ran his thumb over her cheekbone. "Love?" He felt her tense under his hand. _Why are you scared?_ His eyes widening, he repeated his pet name for her. "Love." She squirmed, unconsciously readjusting herself against him. He took a firmer hold of her face. "Is that it?" He pulled Buffy to face him. "Are you scared of loving me?" 

            Buffy wanted desperately to back away from him, stand on the other side of the room, in another state practically. But something kept her close to him. She was frozen, forced to face the one person who knew her completely. Knew every weakness. Every fault. Every button that, when pushed, would cause her to self-destruct. _Why is there nothing but love in your eyes? _"Yes."

            He kissed her quickly, igniting within them both a flame they'd considered to be long extinguished. He let his hand slide back to run through her hair. Leaning in, he whispered to her "Will you always be scared, love?"

            She felt his breath tickle against the skin of her neck. His face, brushing hers as he pulled back. His fingers, idly fondling her hair. He was smiling. "I don't know."

            "Someone once told me something." His smile turned into a playful smirk, as he kissed the tip of her nose.

            "Really." 

            His eyes glittered dangerously. He looped his other arm around her waist, murmuring into her ear. "You should always face your fears." 

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I wonder what that could imply…Only way to find out is to review. *wink*


	3. How Much I Care

AN: Hey! Congratulate me! I Finally Figured Out What I'm Going To Do With This Story! J (thanks TV guide…) Please, read, review, try to follow my ever twisting plot line, and, um….yeah. 

Disclaimer: All characters belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss.

How Much I Care

            Buffy woke up again after the sun had risen. For a while, she lay in her bed mulling over the previous night's dream. _Oh well. I'm sure it didn't mean anything. Just a dream…_ Try as she might, she couldn't shake it. She dressed slowly, putting off going downstairs. 

            "Morning, Love." Spike greeted her from the table.

            She smiled at the strange sight that lay before her. Obviously, he'd been up awhile. The sweater had been discarded and he was back in his trademark black t-shirt and button up. His oddly brown hair was gelled back. And he was munching on Buffalo wings out of a take out bag, reading the paper. _Did he even sleep?_ "Good morning."

            "Sleep well, then?" He raised his eyebrows, not looking up from the oh-so-interesting business section.

            _Oh yeah. I slept well. I didn't dream up scenes from porno films at all. Nope._ "Uh, yeah." Hurriedly, she went about the kitchen getting herself breakfast.

            Noticing that his disinterested, paper and wings routine wasn't working, Spike stood and followed her. "Niblet went off to school."

            "Uh-huh."

            "You have work?" He looked down at the gym bag resting next to her feet.

            Buffy nodded as she swallowed a mouthful of orange juice. Spinning around quickly, she bumped into him. "Sorry."

            He took her glass and set it on the counter. As she watched confusedly, he brushed a stray piece of hair out of her face. _What's the matter?_

            "You're going to be okay here today..?" Her eyes trailed off to an imaginary point behind him.

            He smiled, backing off. "Who says I have to stay here? Not bursting into flames is working out quite well for me." He went back to the table, sitting down again and grabbing another wing. "Might have me a walk about town." 

            She nodded, mostly to herself. "Mmmhmm. Dawn usually gets home before I do…"

            "I'll be back for the Niblet, don't you worry." He smirked over his bag. "Me and her got some catching up to take care of."

            "Spike?" She stopped, her hand on the door.

            "Hmm." He stood up, licking the last traces of sauce from his fingers.

            She opened her mouth, but stopped. _What do I say? 'Thanks'? I love you? I can't stop thinking about the last night we never had? _"…Never mind."

            He frowned slightly. Standing in front of her, he tried to figure out this woman who'd stolen his heart so many nights ago. _Do you even know how much I care?_ She wouldn't look at him. _Why won't you look at me, Buffy?_ She avoided his gaze as if looking directly into it would cause blindness. _Great. I'm a sodding eclipse. _

            "Doyouthinkmaybeyoucouldtellmehowyoucamebackhere?" The words rushed of her mouth, startling him. She looked down again sheepishly as he processed it.     

            "Yeah, pet."

            "Oh. Okay." She managed a brief glance. "I'd like to know."

            "Alright." He grinned. "Tonight. We'll go out. We can get some more buffalo wings."

            She smiled. God, how he loved that smile. "Sounds good."

            "See you then, love."  He let his fingers brush hers as she turned and went out the door. 

            _BRRRING_

            He turned to the phone with an evil grin on his face. "Hello?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Hey, I'm home!" Buffy kicked open the door, racing through with her various bags of groceries. The house was quiet. Too quiet. "Hello?" Setting the bags down, she went upstairs. Dawn's room was empty. Her room was empty. No one was hiding in the linen closet or the bathroom. Downstairs, no one occupied what she now thought of as 'Spike's room', and no one was in the kitchen pantry. _Odd…_ A slip of paper on the counter caught her attention. 

            _Buffy-_

_                        Got a call from your Watcher this morning, said to bring Dawn over soon as she got home. Said you should come over too once you got home. _

Frowning, she slid the note in her pocket and went back to the car. _Wonder what's wrong now…_

Giles's driveway was packed as she pulled up. _Giles car…Willow's car…Xander's car…a little brown car I've never seen in my life…and a really big conversion van._ Parking along the road, she hurried up to the front step. The door was unlocked.

            "Hey, B." Faith nodded from her position on the counter. 

            "Faith?" Buffy looked around. Not only Faith-Robin too, and a few of the girls from Cleveland who were eyeing a vampire they had tied up to a chair. 

            "Yeah, I know, bit of a shock for me too, having the whole bunch of us together again." Faith grinned. "Noticed you got your vamp back."

            "Uh, yeah." Buffy looked around for Spike, finally finding him standing in the corner. "What's going on?"

            Giles stood up from the couch. "Well, for one, these girls have come here in need of help." He nodded to the vampire. "They've become completely overrun with vampires-some sort of breeding program, apparently. This one seems to know about it, though he's not doing us much good at the moment." He gestured to Faith and Robin. "A new breed of demon has popped up in Africa and seems fairly unkillable," he turned back to her. "And I got more of the translations done."

            Buffy blinked several times. "…Wow." 

            Spike smiled a little from his corner. "That's what I said."

            "The world's going mad again." Xander nodded seriously. "We're all going to die."

            "We're not going to die." Buffy raised an eyebrow. "We just have to…ration out…our….."

            "Strength?" Giles offered. "We do seem to have multiple problems." 

            "One at a time." She walked over to Giles's pile of books. "What do you have?" 

            Giles held the notebook up in front of him, squinting at his handwriting. "_Into each time before one was sent to save the world. One to balance the forces of light and of dark. Among them, there will be one unlike the rest. The One. She is the way to maintaining the balance for which they have fought. She will be beyond goodness or evil. To save her, the champion of heart will rise._"

Spike looked up, startled. Buffy smiled at him.

"_Dark will lighten and the world will be anew as it never was. He will give himself to save them all. There will be a great battle, in which he will perish. The forces of evil will bide their time under the Earth, waiting for the time when they might rise again._" Giles looked over at the other Slayers. "_The One and her army will be spread far and wide. They will face their own evils as they would-alone._" He frowned. "I don't quite understand that last line. _Only together can the balance be achieved_."

"Balance?" She sat down on the edge of the couch.

"The balance between good and evil, I've be led to presume." He took of his glasses, whipping them on his shirt. "Although it also implies that you are this very balance."

"Maybe not," Willow piped up. "Maybe she's…she's just…the tool! You know, she can wave her hands and 'poof!' we're all balance-y." 

Giles nodded, mulling it over. 

"Problem number two?" Buffy looked around expectantly. 

Robin stood up. "We've been traveling around, as you know. Well, we went into Africa-"

"Africa, great spot." Spike chipped in.

"-Uh, yeah…" Robin blinked a few times. "Anyway, we came across these demons. Big. They live out in the plains. Pretty much unkillable."

"What did they look like?" Kennedy reached over for one of Giles's books.

"Standing up, maybe eight feet tall." He wrung his hands. "The front….appendages are really long curved claws. The back legs are longer, stronger."

"Looked kinda like a kangaroo…" Faith mused. She looked up at all the curious eyes. "What?"

"It did." Robin walked around the room. "It ran similarly, didn't bounce though."

"Cause that would just be weird." Buffy smirked.

"Yeah. Scale-y, tan and dark brown splotches, no ears." He shuttered. "Small eyes in the front of the face. Seriously long tounge."

"With venom." Faith rolled up her arm to reveal a nasty looking wound. "Bad little suckers." 

Buffy nodded. "Okay. Big evil kangaroos. Check. Problem three?"

The Cleveland trio stood up. "The vampire's in our town are turning everyone they run into into a vampire."

"Ah." Buffy smiled at the explanation. "And him?" She nodded towards the vampire.

"He seems to know what's going on."

Buffy walked up to him. "How about you tell me what's going on."

He looked up, glaring at her. "I'd rather be eaten alive by a Shereglack demon," he hissed.

"Okay." She punched him in the face. "How about now?"

"I'll never tell you anything."

"Yeah, you will." She punched him again. "Giles, lock him up…somewhere."

"Tub's a good spot." Spike smirked.

"Tub. Very good." Giles went to fetch his chains.

"We'll see what song you sing after a few days with no blood." She ran her fingers through his hair, grabbing a fistful and jerking his head back.

Giles came out, fastening the chains to his ankles and wrists. Spike came over and helped drag the vampire to the bathroom. "Why do I always have to watch the evil vampires?"

" 'Cuz you're the only one of this lot who can drive a vamp mad." Spike shoved the vampire down the hall.

"I'm offended." Giles glared at Spike.

He shrugged. "Only telling the truth, mate."

Buffy watched the two bicker, a smile dancing on her face. _Does he even know how much I care?_ With a sigh, she turned back to the group. "Okay. Here's the plan….." 

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*places hands on either side of reader's head* You're going to review….You're going to review….


	4. Blush

AN: Thanks everyone for the reviews! Glad to know you're enjoying this plotline. I'll continue with it as long as I know 'X' amount of people are enjoying it. Though, I must admit, I'm quite wrapped up in the storyline as well by this point. But before I give away too much of things to come, maybe we should just get back to the story….

Disclaimer: All characters belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss.

Blush

            They sat across from one another in an uneasy silence. After revealing her practical plan, she and Spike had gone out to a little sit-down restaurant. As the waitress dropped off the onion flower, he looked up from the napkin he'd been fiddling with.

            "So…this plan, are we going to go about it soon?" He looked up at her. "I mean, I just figured the Scoobies would want to sink their teeth into it a little, do the research gig…"

            Buffy smiled. "No big rush. A couple of days, probably." She tilted her head, squinting at the freshly bleached vamp that sat before her. "You made your hair all…Spike-y."

            He smirked. "Yeah. Had some spare time." Clearing his throat, he leaned across the booth. "Do you want to know or not?"

            "Huh?"

            He bit his lip, for once uncertain. "I mean, that's why you're doing this, right? You want to know the big story of how old Spike magically popped up again?"

            She nodded slowly. "I'd like to. But whether or not you're going to tell me is a different thing. And that's not the only reason." She dropped her gaze as she muttered the last line of her mini-speech.

            "Well." A small, pleased smile flashed across his face. Shaking it off quickly, he got back to business. "Right then. Abridged or unedited?"

            "Which one's better?" She asked innocently, twirling her straw around in her glass of water. 

            "Alright, you want to be cheeky?" He growled. "I fell out of the sky, got horribly lost in Canada, called up Nancy-boy and came here."

            Buffy's eyebrows shot up. "Huh?"

            He smiled. "Fine." He leaned back, studying his fingernails. "First thing I know, I land on this really big rock. When I finally come to, I'm in the middle of nowhere stark naked." He paused as she smirked. "Anyway….I wander around for awhile. Eventually, I come to this campsite. Well, there's this map there, blanket too, some marshmallows. You know. Camp stuff. So I get the map, and find out I'm in Canada-"

            "How'd you get to Canada?" She interrupted, frowning.

            He blinked at her. "I wish I knew. Really. Should I go on?"

            Buffy blushed. "Uh, yeah."

            "-So I'm in Canada. I walk around some more, until one day I figure out I'm some sort of super vampire who isn't poofing in sunlight." He smirked. "That helped. Couple of days later-"

            "You say later," she interrupted again "but do you know when, really? You were gone for months."

            He shrugged. "Figure I spent a bit of that time up there-" nodding to the ceiling, he continued "-but the days really melted together. Not sure."

            "Hmmm."

            "Eventually, I see a train. So I'm running, right? And I get to the tracks, and I'm so tired, I fall asleep." He sat up again, grinning. "And I wake up right as the train is coming down on me."

            Buffy's eyes flew open. "Wait, you're saying you almost got hit by a train?"

            "I didn't get hit," he scoffed, "but it did tear my map to shreds. So now I'm out in the forest with no map. I went along those tracks for…god knows how many days, until I got to the Bay. Now, there was a boat sitting along the edge." He held his arms out, trying to describe his boat. "A two person, old, broken row boat. One oar. Hole in the bottom. You know the kind."

            She nodded.

            "So I get in this boat, patch it up a bit, and head out. Well, this sodding boat only goes maybe ten miles on a good day, and you have to add on the time you're going in circles because of the oar. But then, maybe a week later, I came across another boat." He stretched his arms further. "Big. Lumber boat. Lots of men onboard and a nice, fast engine. So I get on this boat, and the men want to give me a lift to…Fort Rupert." He snickered at the name. "I got off at the nearest village though, and went into town to call an old, old friend."

            Buffy blinked, absorbing the information. "Angel. You called Angel?"

            Spike nodded. "Had to. You know Sunnydale was completely gone. He was the only one I still knew would be there." He took a sip of water, cracking his knuckles as he did so. "Well, the pansy made me beg for a few minutes before agreeing to wire me some money to fly down to LA."

            "Why LA?" She cocked her head. "Why couldn't he just tell you to come here?"

            Spike raised his eyebrows at her. "Because you didn't tell him where you were, pet. He didn't know."

            She inhaled sharply as she realized the truth behind what he was saying. "Yeah…sort of forgot about that, didn't I?"

            He smiled. "No worries. Still found you, didn't I? So I go to LA, and it turns out he only brought me down to beat me up but-" he held up a finger before she could comment "-I won. So we go back to his place, he gives me a phone number and, as I discovered later on, slips some bills in my pocket." He shook his head at the idea of his grandsire actually being generous with him. "I do a bit of sleuthing and manage to get your home address, hopped on a bus and came over." Shrugging, he stuck his hands in his pockets to search for a cigarette. "That's pretty much it."

            Without pausing in her thought processing, Buffy opened her purse and tossed him her pack and light. "And you just wandered the streets until you found us?"

            "No, I followed your car from Giles's." He looked down at the cigarette, puzzled. "When did you start smoking?"

            She looked down. "Oh, ah…after you left…"

            His head snapped up, eyes focused on her pretty face. Slowly, a smile replaced the astonished look upon his face. " 'Tis alright, love. No harm in missing little old Spike." 

            She blushed again. _Why is it he can make me do that?_ She looked up, prepared to change the topic. She was thrown off guard as his fingers brushed her cheek. "Spike..."

            "Shhh." He pressed his finger to her lips, studying every curve of her face. Swallowing hard, he whispered, "I missed you, too." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Hey, were home." Buffy pushed the door open, looking around the living room. "Dawn?"

            The teenager popped her head out of the kitchen. "Oh. Hi."

            "Hi…" She looked around again suspiciously. "Okay. What did you do."

            "Nothing!" Dawn glared at her sister until she noticed Spike slip through the door. "Spike! Hey!"

            "Hey there Bit."

            "You bleached your hair."

            "I did." He cocked his head. "Summers women seem to like it, too."

            Dawn grinned, watching the red creep up her sister's neck. 

            "I'm going to change before patrol…" Buffy started heading for the stairs. "Don't…break anything." Giving them both apprehensive looks, she went up.

            "Yeah. Like we'd really break anything." Dawn gestured around the room to the various cardboard boxes hiding in the corners. "We don't have anything to break!"

            Spike smiled, sliding down onto the sofa. "She means well."

            She crossed her arms before her, studying the vampire before her. "It's good you're not dead."

            He chuckled. "Yeah. It is."

            "No." She shook her head. "I mean, yeah, alive is generally a good thing, but it is really good that you're back…with us."

            Spike cocked an eyebrow. "Don't catch your meaning I'm afraid, pet."

            "Buffy." Her sister's name came out like a sigh. "You were gone, so you didn't see. How she was." She turned her gaze back to him. "It was bad."

            He frowned. "Buffy's strong, Nib. She survived a bleeding apocalypse, didn't she?" 

            Dawn sat down next to him, his blue eyes bearing down on her. "Sometimes I think she didn't." Whipping at her face quickly, she looked away. "It changed her. Took her away." Her fingers toyed with the edge of her shirt. "Maybe you could bring her back."

            He whistled slowly. "Nibblet…"

            "I know that you guys have had your problems and you've done some really shitty things-" She winced as he frowned at her language. "-But I can't help thinking she's better off with you here. You're good for her."

            He didn't say anything. After a minute, she started fidgeting, more nervous with every empty tick of the clock. Finally he reached out, catching some of her hair in his fingers. _Soft. Like hers. _He brought the ends of the strands to his nose. Vanilla and peppermint wafted through him. He smiled. She looked at him, smiling as well though not fully understanding why. "So I'm happy you're back, basically."

            "Got that." Standing, he turned towards the stairs as Buffy walked down them. 

            "Look, I'm back." Buffy smiled at Dawn.

            Dawn gazed at Spike a moment longer. "Yeah. You're back."

            "And I'm all Slayer-y." She spun in a little circle.

            "Always a treat." Spike smirked, sauntering closer to her. "After all, what's a Slayer without her mercilessly tight pants?"

            Buffy reached out to push him away, laughing and trying to hide the sudden warmth in her face. "Yeah. That's me. The Slayer who wears Hot Pants."

            He leaned closer, whispering so Dawn wouldn't hear. "Didn't say that was a bad thing, love."

            After giving Spike a severe glaring, she looked over to Dawn. "I'm going to be back before midnight, okay?"

            Dawn nodded. "Midnight. Check."

            A concerned look crossed his face. "You're going patrolling?"

            She shrugged. "I mean, no big, just a little run of the mill walk in the dark." She grabbed her coat off the banister.

            "I'm coming with you," Spike sighed, following her.

            "Have fun killing things!" Dawn called out.

            "Always," Buffy replied. As they headed out the front door, she grabbed onto his sleeve. "Hey."

            He stopped, glancing over at her. She stood with her hands on her hips, looking exactly like the little tough Slayer she was. _God, I love her._

            "What were you guys talking about anyway?" She tilted her head back to gaze up at his unwavering stare.

            Spike smiled softly, reaching down to take her hand. "You."

            Buffy blushed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Review. Review. Review? Review?!? Review!!! 

Please?


	5. I'll Do Anything

AN: Muchas gracias para las reviewas….okay, I suck at Spanish. But I don't suck at Spuffy! Or do I? Hmmm. What do you think? Here we are, in another author's note where I, as usual, have nothing productive to say. Oh sure, I could do my stereotypical 'read, review and enjoy!', but that wouldn't be much fun now, would it? I could give you random bits of info about the story 'did you know Buffy's working as a personal trainer at a local gym? You did? Darn.', but that's, well, boring. I could ramble on and on and on about nothing in particular to drive you all nuts…which I'm already doing, come to think of it. Whoops. 

Disclaimer: All characters belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss. 

I'll Do Anything

            ***_It was coming. Breathing on her neck. Grabbing at her shirt. She ran faster, screaming. It caught her ankle. Kicking, she tumbled to the ground. It was on her. She could barley move as it choked her, dragging her back to her feet. A mangled cry escaped her as she was punched repeatedly in the face. Forced to her knees, she was turned to watch what the others were doing._

_            Two others had gone after him, slamming his limp body over and over again into the side of the building. They drug him close to her. He was covered in cuts and bruises, barely recognizable save for the white of his hair. They dug their claws mercilessly into his soft flesh. The demon containing her reached into her jacket, pulling out a wooden stake._

_            "No!" Buffy struggled, knocking her demon off. Roaring, it tackled her, and crashed her head into the pavement with a loud thump. She fought an ever-loosing battle as she tried not to let the dark surround her. It was on her, holding her arms and legs back so she couldn't budge. It kicked her again, wailing. She pressed her head against the street. It grabbed her hair, forcing her to look up again._

_            "Slayer." The word came out of its mouth like a curse or a plague. "How do you want your lover to die?"_

_            She watched in horror as the stake was pressed to his bloodied chest. "No," she murmured. "Not him." She blinked back her tears. "Take me. I'll do anything."_

_            The demons grinned at her. "Stupid, stupid Slayer." They punched him again, letting him drop to the ground. "That wouldn't be any fun." They drew out their swords. "Make your choice. Or else-" A long cut was made across his chest. "He dies slowly."_

_            Spike pried open his one not fully swollen eye. He smiled softly at her, despite the pain. He let out a scream as they began driving a sword through each of his hands. "Buffy…"_

_            She let out another cry. They laughed, pinning the helpless vampire to the ground. They reached for the stake. "Say goodbye to your Slayer."_

_            He closed his eyes, drawing a deep breath. "I love you, Buffy." _

_            The stake was plunged into his heart._

_            "Spike!" Buffy howled, fighting wildly. "No!" she looked up at the pile of dust. "No…I love you." She wriggled free of her captor, kicking him back and breaking his neck. "I love him!" She grabbed the swords, impaling them through the chest of the second demon. She started chasing the third. "I." She jumped on him, forcing him down. "Love." She stuck the sword through his neck. "Spike." With a twist, she flicked his head from his body. _

_            She looked around at the carnage. Her eyes trailed back to the dust sitting in the middle of the road. She stood, approaching it. Sitting down, she ran her fingers through it lightly. Tears from her face made it stick to her hands. "No."***_

"No!" Buffy jerked up, panting. Wildly, she looked around. _Bedroom. Right. Dream. _She swung her legs over the edge of her bed, pressing her feet to the cold floor. She shuddered. _Spike._ Softly, she stood up and padded downstairs. 

            His door was open slightly. A single candle was lit in the far corner, just enough light for one to see by. She pushed the door back, sliding through. He was sprawled out across the bed. The comforter was a tangled mess on the floor. _Trouble sleeping, hon?_ She smiled as she noticed his mussed hair. Tiptoeing over, she sat down on the edge of the bed. She brushed some of his hair away from his face, quite pleased to find that he wasn't dust. He murmured something incoherent, blinking open a sleep filled eye. 

            "Buffy?" He reached up, scrubbing at his eyes as if they were deceiving him. 

            "Sorry." She stroked his cheek again. "Didn't mean to wake you."

            He squinted at her. Pulling himself up, he tilted his head slowly. "What's the matter then." He took her hands, drawing her in towards him. 

            Buffy sighed, settling herself in the crook of his arm. "Sleep. Well, actually, lack of sleep."

            "Having a spar with the sand man, are we?" Spike let his head rest against hers. 

            "No…" She traced invisible patterns on his chest. "Dream."

            His fingers ran along the edge of her arm, trying to comfort her. "Bad dream, I take it."

            "Yes." She cuddled closer.

            "You're not going to tell me, are you." A rueful smirk played on his lips as he buried his nose in her hair. 

            She tilted her head back to look at him. "Bad dream. You died."

            His smirk broadened. "Already dead, pet."

            "Not the point," she pouted, poking him lightly. "You shouldn't be dying."

            He tightened his grip on her, feeling her heartbeat against him. "Not going anywhere, love."

            She let out a shaky breath. Closing her eyes, she wallowed in the musk of fresh peroxide and cigarette smoke and leather and…_toothpaste?_ She wrinkled her nose slightly, opening her eyes again. "Toothpaste, hmm?"

            He smiled. "I have a right to healthy gums." His eyes glowed as she giggled. _I'll do anything to just make you smile, love._

            "Whatever," she hummed, resting her cheek on his chest. "Can I stay here?"

            "Always a place for you here, love." He kissed her forehead lightly. He felt her smile against him. "Don't even have to ask."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Hey, look who's finally awake!" Willow smiled cheerfully from her seat at Buffy's table. 

            "Hey, look who's over at our house at seven o'clock in the bleeding morning," Spike grumbled, stumbling into the kitchen.

            "Our?" Xander raised an eyebrow from over his book. 

            "Sod off." Spike glared at him as he poured himself a bowl of Cheerios. 

            "Good morning Spike." Giles set down his cup of tea, looking up at the vampire. "Sleep well?"

            Spike looked around suspiciously. "Alright… You Scoobies are acting weirder than usual."

            "No weird," Willow protested. "Just…"

            "What." Spike crunched on his cereal, wandering around to an empty chair. "You must want something."

            Willow looked over to Kennedy guiltily. "No, don't be silly…"

            "They're just being nice to you 'cuz they want you to go to Cleveland and poof all the poofsters," Xander spilled. 

            Spike glowered at him. "I knew that, you wanker."

            "Hey!"

            "Good moring all." Buffy hopped down the stairs, her hair still damp from her shower. 

            "Good morning Buffy," Giles sighed. 

            "Hey!" Dawn piped up from the other side of the table. "I don't even get a 'hello, Dawn'?"

            " 'lo, Dawn," Spike managed through a mouthful of food.

            Dawn grinned. It faded as she saw the serious look on Buffy's face. "Buffy?"

            Buffy looked over and smiled. "Hey." She looked around. "So…what's going on?"

            "He called me a wanker!" Xander pointed an accusing finger to the bleached vamp.

            Spike blinked at him several times. "Don't think that's what the lady meant."

            Buffy sighed. "If I have to separate you two I swear…"

            "I'm good." Xander held up a hand. "Scout's honor."

            Spike frowned. "I don't know what that means, but sure."

            She smiled. "Right. I figure we want to get all of this settled soon, so we're going to be splitting up." She turned to Spike. "I'm sending you to Cleveland with Kennedy to take care of our little outbreak."

            He nodded. 

            "Willow, I want you here with Giles working on that translation." She looked down at the piles of books. "I'd like to have that thing translated soon."

            "Of course." Giles examined his glasses before replacing them on his face.

            "What about me, B?" Faith leaned against the wall, watching the scene with a look of amusement. "Any good gigs?"

            Buffy shrugged. "Up to you. Take your pick between Cleveland and Africa. I'm going to need someone going with me, though."

            Faith winced. "Don't know, B. Don't like those possessed kangaroos." She gestured towards Spike. "Why don't you take bleach boy with you?"

            Spike raised his eyebrows, watching her. "Up to you, pet."

            Buffy frowned. "I really need you in Cleveland." She winced as a confused, hurt look passed his face. 

            "Well then hey, possessed kangaroos it is," Faith said dryly. "Gotta love 'em." 

            "Buffy," Giles stood up. "I really think we should focus more attention to these demons. We don't even know what they are."

            She cocked her head. "Okay. I guess the whole translate-y thing could wait…"

            "What do I get to do?" Dawn looked up excitedly. 

            "Lots of stuff. Lots of good, important stuff." Buffy nodded vigorously.

            Dawn slumped back in her chair. "Research, huh?"

            Xander smiled sympathetically. "It's okay, Dawnie. You and I, we'll be those two weirdos looking at demon books!" 

            Robin raised a cautious hand. "And my role in all of this…" 

            Buffy blushed. "Ah, helpful principal guy?"

            "Choose your own adventure." Faith walked up behind him, placing her hands on his shoulders. "It's the best kind."

            "I'll bet," he said sarcastically before sighing. "Fine. I'll be Coffee Doughnut Guy."

            "Woohoo! I got promoted!" Xander grinned. 

            "Alright." Buffy looked around to each of them. "You all know what you're going to do. We'll head out tomorrow." She waited as the topic returned to less formal affairs before approaching Spike. "Spike…"

            "No, I understand." He shrugged her off, busying himself with his dishes. "Don't want me in the way. Better to go alone."

            "No." She reached out, putting a hand on his back. He paused. "I need you to help them. You're the only one strong enough."

            "It's just vampires," he scoffed. "And they are four vampire Slayers, are they not?"

            She leaned closer, whispering to him. "That's not what I meant." She let him turn around to face him. "You can organize them. Lead them. It will get done faster with you there to help."

            "Leaving you out in the middle of nowhere with god knows what and Faith," he argued. Worry shown vibrantly in his eyes. 

            She tilted her head. "Hey." Drawing him away from the group, she took his hand. "I'll be fine. I'm just asking you to do this for me."

            He shook his head. "No. Don't use that excuse. You know damn well I'll do anything for you, don't have to go about abusing it." His voice softened as his tone dropped. "You know I'll do it anyway." 

            She smiled. _If things were different, maybe…_she shook the thought from her head. "Thank you." Before he could react, she stepped in and placed a light kiss on his lips. "I lo-…I, ah, appreciate it." Nodding professionally, she turned and fled back to the safety of the group. 

            He pressed his fingers to his lips. A smirk spread across his face. _The second you decide to admit it, Buffy, I'll be here. _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Why don't you review? Don't you love me? *tears well up in eyes* 

Meh, probably not. That's not the point though, is it?

**Review?**


	6. Destroyed

AN: As always, thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing this story! I'm being drug on a bit of a road trip today, so there may not be a post for a day or two…I'll be sitting in the back of a large van, writing my chapters the old fashioned way. And then getting home and realizing I now have to type them all out. I dread it already. Anyhoo…um….yeah. *points frantically to chapter* Read! Review! And like it, gosh darn it!

Disclaimer: All characters belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss.

Destroyed

            Buffy dug around in her dresser, frowning. _Where did my blue top go?_ "Dawn!"

            Dawn walked over to the doorway. "What?"

            She put her hands on her hips. "Have you seen my blue halter top?"

            "No." Dawn turned to leave.

            "Hey!" Buffy ran over, glaring at her. "Alright, what'd you do with it."

            Dawn grinded her teeth. "I. Didn't. Take. Your. Sodding. Shirt."

            Buffy's eyebrows shot up. "Rubbing off, much?" She directed the question to the shadow lurking not-so-stealthfully in the doorway.   

            Spike smirked, saying nothing.

            She sighed. "Fine. The closet monster ate my shirt." She looked down at her bag as Dawn went off. "Hmm."

            "Problems, love?" Spike fished a cigarette from his pocket, looking around for a light. Noticing a lighter on her nightstand he stepped in. 

            She slumped down onto the bed. "No," she said, muttering, "I wish I knew where my shirt was…"

            He smiled, blowing smoke out at her. "Didn't take it."

            She held her hands up. "Hey, I never asked. Though I'm relieved you're no longer stealing my clothes."

            "Borrowing!" He protested. "I was going to return them…"

            "Sure." She rolled her eyes. 

            " 'Sides, rather have the girl than the clothes." He grinned evilly, sitting down next to her. "Though I rather did like that shirt."

            She glared at him menacingly before standing up to resume her packing. Reaching under her pillow, she absent-mindedly threw a manila envelope into her bag. 

            Spike eyed it suspiciously, frowning. Slowly, he leaned over and pulled it from the bag as she went to the closet. Opening the dog-eared flap, he pulled out a well worn letter written be all-too familiar hands. _You kept this?_ He blushed silently as he scanned his love-written words. _You keep this under your pillow? _He turned his gaze back to her, replacing the envelope. His mind was whirling a million miles an hour. _She kept it. She kept it. That means she wasn't offended by it. Which means she agreed with it. Which means…_He gulped. He remembered perfectly what he had said. "_You and I, we're bloody perfect for each other."_ _And she agreed with that? Which means…_His thoughts trailed off as a shiver consumed him. _"She has to admit that she needs you…"_ He looked over at her again. _Does this mean you need me, Buffy? Does this mean you really care?_

            "Does this say I'm an evil kangaroo killing Slayer or I'm a skanky whole working in Wal-Mart?" Buffy held up a tight fitting black tank top, frowning.

            He swallowed hard. "Skanky kangaroo Slayer." He was surprised at the catch in his voice. So was she.

            Folding the shirt, she walked over to him. "What." Mystified that he was looking away from her, she bent down, catching his chin in her hand. "What?"

            He let his gaze settle on the envelope. After a moment, she let out a sigh of understanding.

            "Oh." Quietly, she sat down next to him. After eyeing the door a moment, debating whether or not to close it, she turned to face him. "Ummm…"

            He silenced her, leaning forward to press his lips to hers. Slightly taken back by her acceptance, he deepened their kiss. After a moment he pulled back, watching her open her eyes and let out her breath. He stayed close, observing her reaction. "Tell me."

            She frowned, searching his eyes for the hidden meaning. "Tell you what?"

            "Tell me you don't feel anything." He dropped his tone. "Tell me you don't feel what I do every moment I'm with you."

            He saw her lip tremble slightly as she dropped her gaze. "What I feel isn't relevant." 

            He gaped at her, stunned. "Buffy!" He reached out to touch her face. "You didn't shred my letter into bloody pieces. In fact, you kept it. Kept it with you, to say more." He released her. Biting his tongue, he looked down at his lap. "Something in there touched you. Why else would you keep it."

            "It reminded me of you," she whispered. "Yeah, I'll admit, I missed you. I don't care. I did. But-"

            "Stop with your bleeding buts!" he jumped up, whirling around to face her. "All your bloody life, you've waited for something. Someone. And when it's right in front of you, you look up, sigh, and say, "I can't"?" 

            "I. Just. Can't." Buffy shook more than she liked. _Why can't I just hate him? It would be so much easier to not need him here._ She forced back tears at his irritated face. He noticed.

            He felt his anger melting away as she struggled to compose herself. He could never be mad at her. Not really. _Even when she's driving me nuts._ "Why?" He dropped to his knees in front of her. "I swear, if you want me to leave you alone I will, but tell me why!" 

            Her eyes widened. _No. Don't ever leave me. _Alarmed by her thoughts, she sprang from the bed and tried to scramble for the door. He grabbed her by the ankle, pulling her down into his lap. She didn't protest as he wound his arms around her. "I can't," she whispered. He shushed her, stroking her hair. "I just can't."

            "You're a bloody record, you know that?" He murmured into her ear. "But you don't know. You can. You just won't."

            She shook her head. "I can't. Accept that." She turned to look at him. "Please." Her heart broke as the hope he held in his eyes began to fade. _No! I don't mean it! Please, god, I'm so sorry. Don't look that way. I can't love you, you'll destroy me. You're already destroying me._ She squeezed her eyes shut. 

            Spike mentally checked off a list in his head. _Averting gaze. Check. Squirming. Check. Shaking. Check. Fading voice. Check._ He cocked his head at her. _You're lying to me, pet._ He forced her to look at him. "I know you better than that, love." He forced her closer. "I can see past all your little games. You n- you care for me, and you don't like that." He smirked. "Doesn't make it any less true. You're scared because, try as you might, you can't stop thinking 'maybe'. You can't stop feeling…something." Sighing, he let her go. "Go ahead. Stomp all over my heart. You've done it before. But at least I know this time, you'll feel bad." His gaze turned hard. "You know you want to. Go on. Do it." Puffing himself up, he reached in her pocket, fingering a stake. "You've already destroyed me." 

            Buffy let the tear fall down her cheek. She reached out, running a finger along his cheek. He jerked away. "I can't. I can't because…" She took a took a deep breath. "Because I n-"

            Both of their heads shot up as the door opened. Xander flinched at catching them like that, but didn't let it deter him. "Buffy. We've got a bit of a problem."

            She nodded, gently unwrapping her arms from Spike's neck. He helped her up, placing a hand protectively on her hip. Xander pretended not to notice. "Alright. I'll be right down." Watching him leave, she turned back to him. "We'll talk about this after we get back."

            He sighed, entwining his fingers in hers. She squeezed them before walking out the door. For a moment, he simply blinked at the empty room. Then he tilted his head back to stare at the ceiling. "Why me?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            _"Flight 174 to Cleveland, Ohio now boarding. Flight 174, now boarding."_ The intercom droned on, listing off various other flights and times. Slowly, the four Slayers and Spike stood and turned to their friends.

            "Don't die, okay?" Willow smiled at Kennedy, wrapping her arms around her.

            "No dying. Check." Kennedy hugged her tightly before letting go. 

            Spike looked over at the two. "Don't worry. I won't let any Big Bads get her."

            Buffy glanced over at him. "Don't you die, either."

            He sighed, stepping up to her. "And why not?"

            She smiled, wringing her hands. "Because then I wouldn't get to tell you something." She wiggled a finger at his confused expression, biding him to come closer. "Something that needs to be said." 

            He raised his eyebrows expectantly. 

            "But not here." Buffy tilted her head at him. Reaching out to run a finger down his duster, she dropped something in his pocket. "Go kill things first. I'll be here when you get back." 

            Dawn interrupted the moment by jumping at Spike from behind, entrapping him in a bear hug. "Bye!"

            He winced, accepting the hug with a rueful glare. "Yeah. Bye to you too, Nibblet."

            Xander nodded to him, looking a bit lost. "Yeah. Good luck."

            Rona waved at everyone as they gathered their bags. "Thanks for all the help. We'll call you when we have something." 

            After an awkward goodbye with the Scoobies, Spike offered a small wave to Buffy. He got a hug in return. "Well this is a treat," he said smirking. 

            She pulled back, a smirk on her face as well. "Shut up. I have a right to hug you when you're leaving." _And in the morning, and in the evening, and at supper time…_her mind silently added. She looked up at him again. "Bye."

            "Toodles, love." With a half smile, he turned and boarded the plane. Sitting down, he dug around in his pockets for the gum he had bought. _Damn the no smoking rules…_ His fingers paused as they brushed over a folded envelope. _What the…_He pulled it out, turning it over in his hands. Slowly, he opened it. A post-it note and a piece of candy lay inside. Going for the note first, he held it up to read. Buffy's familiar handwriting jumped out at him. _"Because I think…"_ _What?_ He slid the candy out into his hand. It was a candy heart. Placing it on the post it note, he read the message over again. _"Because I think…I LOVE YOU"_

            Spike's mouth dropped open as he blinked rapidly. A grin slowly captured his face. It was soon replaced by a look of irritation. "Darn her!" He slumped down, glowering. _Great. The girl of my dreams finally comes out and tells me what I've always wanted to hear…on the same day she leaves for Africa with no contact information._ He cracked his knuckles, reading the message again. Sighing, he leaned back in the comfy airplane seat. _I guess un-life isn't so bad, after all._ He grabbed a pad of paper from his bag and started writing a lengthy letter. _Dear Buffy…_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hmm. What on earth do you think happened in between those scenes…I'll leave it up to your imaginations, or write it in a request only chapter. YOUR CHOICE! (hint hint, if I don't get at least, oh, three requests, I'll scratch the whole idea and we'll just assume nothing happened) 

As always, review! 


	7. Under My Skin

AN: Greetings from a large purple van. *grin* Ugh, this is going to be horrible to transfer. And my Dramamine isn't working. But before I pass out from it's drowsy goodness, maybe I can get a chapter out. *yawn* Well, maybe not. But I can try.

P.S.: I wrote a tiny little snippet for the send out from last chapter, if you're interested please mention you want it in a review (along with your email address). By the way, it's not a send out because of explicitness; it's actually horribly fluffy. But it has little if nothing to do with the plot. An explanation, if you would, for the candy heart fun-ness. 

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss. 

Under My Skin

"So, B, what now?" Faith dropped her bags by her feet, surveying the airport. 

            Buffy shrugged, yawning from the twenty plus hours of jet lag weighing down on her. "Go to a hotel, I guess. Try to get some sleep. Then head out for some demon-hunting."

            Faith nodded, picking up the luggage again. "Whatever suits ya. I could go for a crash." Dragging Buffy after, she went outside to flag down a taxi. Buffy waited in silence. "So, any particular reason you didn't want Captain Peroxide to tag along?"

            "I don't see how that's any of your business," Buffy replied as they put their things in the trunk of the parked taxi. 

            "Where to, miss?"

            "Nearest hotel." Faith handed the man a few bills, turning her attention back to the quiet Slayer beside her. "Touchy, touchy. All's not well in Paradise?" She blinked at her unintended pun. "I mean, problems with your lover, eh?"

            Buffy sighed as the question hit home, irking her right under her skin like it was supposed to. "He's not my lover."

            Faith held her hands up innocently. "Hey hey, didn't mean to intrude. You guys have just seemed sort of…snuggly." 

            She smirked. "And what about you and Robin, huh?"

            Faith grinned, turning her head away. "Not denying anything B. Certainly not denying." Wiggling her eyebrows suggestively, she resumed a more somber tone. "Seriously though, what's up with you two?"

            She squirmed uncomfortably. "There's nothing 'up' with us. We're very much down." Frowning at the words spilling out of her mouth, she sputtered to correct herself. "I mean, ah, you know, no news on that front. Very not exciting. Pretty boring, actually." She winced at her own mindless babble. 

            Faith raised her eyebrows, shrugging. "The guy's got it bad for you, B. It's obvious."

            "It's always been obvious." Buffy looked down at her hands. "That doesn't make it easy."

            "Well, here's an idea." Faith gave her a big, sunny, fake smile. "Why don't you take advantage to the fact that you guys are on different sides of the planet. You know, enjoy your space." She turned to look out the window. "I'm sure he's enjoying his."

            "What's that supposed to mean?" Buffy snapped, alarmed.

            Faith gave her a wicked grin. "Oh yeah. You don't care at all." She waved it off casually. "He's probably smoking, drinking, feeding, having sex with lots of the locals."

            She glared at Faith as she collapsed in giggles. "Very funny." She watched the scenery fly by. "I don't care. I don't."

            "Sure." Faith agreed, nodding. "You don't care so much you can't stop thinking about him."

            "American Embassy." The cab driver slowed to a stop before the large building.

            Both girls' eyebrows shot up. Slowly, Buffy tilted her head back to look up at the many stories. "I don't know if we can afford this."

            "Oh yes, we can." Faith pulled a credit card from her jacket, waving it in front of her face. "The Council sure knows how to treat a gal."

            With a smile, Buffy paid the driver and climbed out, squinting in the midday sun. "They sure do."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Spike whirled in a circle, taking out three of the vamps in one fatal sweep. Ducking, he avoided a severe blow to the nose.

            "Man, these people really have a pest control problem!" Kennedy exclaimed, slicing the head off one vampire before being tackled by another.

            Rona let out a yelp as five of the mob turned on her. "How the hell can there be so many of them?!?"

            "Some people haven't been doing their jobs apparently," Spike grunted as the dust settled around him.

            "Hey!" Vi leapt over the vampires to save Rona, knocking several over in the process.

            "He's right." Kennedy kicked out from under her attacker. "This place is a mad house."

            The small group of Slayers and Vampire finished off the rest of the bloodsuckers in silence. Once they were alone again, they continued on back to the apartment the girls shared.

            "How long has it been this bad?" Spike inquired, twirling a stake absent-mindedly in his hands.

            "A few weeks. It actually got a lot worse in those days we were gone." Shannon shrugged, scanning the street in front of them. "I don't really know what their big, bad plan is."

            Spike smirked. "Trust me. They don't have a plan. It's probably a few fledglings who decided it'd be fun to take over a…Hellmouth." The confidence in his voice faded out as a dozen or so more vampires came out of the alley towards them. "Then again…could be wrong…"

            "Spread out," Kennedy hissed.

            "Well well well." The vampire who appeared to be the head of the troop sauntered towards Spike. "If it isn't Spike, or shall I say William the Bloody."

            "Do I know you?" Spike asked, squinting.

            "No. But we know of you," he sneered. "You're a legend. The famous Spike-once a Master Vampire, and now a Slayer's lap dog." His lip curled in disgust. "You make me sick." 

            Spike snarled, slipping into his game face. "Why don't you come a little closer and say that."

            "Oh, I will." He approached to within six inches of Spike, who was now growling softly. "You. Make. Me. Sick," he whispered harshly into his ear.

            With all the fury he possessed, Spike punched the vampire back into a dumpster. He was quickly replaced by one of his minions. The girls sprang into action, quickly dusting half of the clan.

            "I make you sick?" As the remains of the minion dissipated, he chased after the leader. "We'll see how sick you can get."

            "Look at you, tagging after her like an old mutt." The vampire bounced off the wall, ducking Spike's wild swing. "You'd even kill your own sire if she asked you to, I'll bet."

            Spike grabbed him by the collar, sucker-punching him. He stayed silent, feeding off the slew of comments coming from his mouth.

            "You give us all a bad name!" He garbled through a mouthful of blood. "You trail after that stupid girl like you think she loves you."

            Spike went wild, beating the vampire until his eyes swelled shut and he was bleeding profusely. "SHUT UP!"

            "You think she does!" He laughed, coughing up more blood as a well-placed kick landed in his ribs. "Open up your eyes. She's a fucking Slayer!"

            Spike's eyes widened at his language. _You know, a few years ago I would never have noticed that…_ Shaking the thought out of his mind, he continued pummeling the snickering, sniveling vampire.

            "Spike!" Kennedy screamed. "Kill him already!"

            The other girls watched the overly visual display in silence, wincing at each unnecessary blow.

            "Spike!" Unable to watch anymore, Rona jumped in and grabbed his arm.

            Jerking away from her, he was surrounded by Shannon and Vi while Kennedy put the creature out of its misery. "Let me go."

            "Hey, calm down-" Vi said, exasperated, as he took off around the corner. "Hey!" 

            Despite their protests, he ran faster until their voices faded out. Now there was only one he could still hear. _"Open your eyes. She's a fucking Slayer!"_ Slowing, he rubbed his fingers against his temples. He had lost it back there, he knew. He had let a stupid fledgling get under his skin. _What the hell is wrong with me?_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Yes…yes…well, good for you." Giles smiled as the girl chattered. His smile was quickly replaced with a worried frown. "He what?…yes, I suppose that's understandable-you didn't find him?" He rubbed his forehead. "No, I'm sure he's okay…yes…please, call again if he isn't back tomorrow. Possibly he just needed to blow off some steam…of course…yes, you too. Until then. Goodbye." He replaced the phone on the receiver before collapsing back in his chair.

            "Who was that?" Willow asked, pausing in her reading.

            "Shannon," Giles sighed.

            "Is Ken-um, is everyone okay?" Her forehead wrinkled with concern.

            He smiled. "Kennedy is fine. Actually, it's Spike who's unaccounted for."

            "Huh?"

            "He ran off after beating a vampire to a bloody pulp," he explained.

            Willow frowned. "But that's a good thing. Vampire, bad. Well, I mean, unless it was a good vampire…" Her voice trailed off.

            Giles shook his head. "No, this was a regular vampire. But that doesn't make what he did right. He had an opportunity to steak it," he shrugged. "And he didn't."

            "Well, maybe he had a reason," she argued. "I mean, hello, this is Spike here." She wrung her hands uncomfortably. "He wouldn't do something like that…would he?"

            "It's very possible he did." Giles picked up another book. "We have no idea what he's dealing with."

            Willow looked down at the text before her, murmuring, "I hope he's okay."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Buffy rolled over for the umpteenth time. _Why can't I fall asleep?_ She looked enviously at the Slayer in the other bed snoring softly. No matter what she tried, she was still wide-awake. Her mind spun at a hundred miles an hour. She twitched at any little noise in the quiet room. And her skin itched for a touch she couldn't have. That was the real problem, deep down. _Great. Now, on top of everything else, he's given me a sleeping disorder?_ She wandered over to the pull out sofa, grabbing the one long cushion and dragging it back to her own bed. Placing it beside her, she closed her eyes again. _Faith is just going to love this. Little Buffy can't fall asleep without her Spike pillow._ She draped an arm over the bulky pad. Somehow, the poly-cotton blend didn't feel in the least like his cool, surprisingly soft skin. _It'll just have to do._ She started humming softly to herself, the lyrics to the song milling about in her head. _Twenty twenty twenty four hours to go, I wanna be sedated…_ She tried to picture him opening her note. Maybe drop it to the floor in astonishment. Make a sound, just loud enough to make everyone look at him and cause him to blush with embarrassment. Get that smug little look on his face, the one he used when he was right about something. With a smirk, Buffy drifted off to dreams filled with candy hearts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Spike shivered as he pulled his duster closer around him. _Maybe getting hopelessly lost in a new town wasn't the brightest thing I've ever done._ Spying a mailbox, he hurried over and slid his letter through the door. _Now all I can do is hope to god Giles forwards it…_ He rubbed his hands together. Looked around for any familiar buildings. A bar caught his attention. _Why not-I'm already lost, let's get drunk on top of it._ He slid in, securing himself a seat at the counter.

            "What can I get for you?" The bartender with a name tag that said "Dan" looked up from his locals to the new customer who seemed to be impersonating Billy Idol.

            "Whiskey." Spike slapped down a few bills, throwing back the first shot and tapping the counter again with the empty glass.

            "Problems?" Dan asked as he refilled the glass.

            "Like you wouldn't believe," he grumbled.

            Dan chuckled. "Don't I know. Let me take a guess. It's about a girl, isn't it."

            _It's always about a girl,_ Spike thought with a faint smile. " 'Course."

            He grabbed a few bottles from under the counter and another glass, mixing up a new concoction. "Here, try this. Money back if it doesn't make you forget all your troubles."

            Spike eyed the absinthe that was craftily hid in a whiskey jug as it was poured into the drink. _Isn't that illegal over here?_ With a shake of his head, he pulled out a few more dollars. "Like anything could."

            He winced. "That bad, eh?"

            The vampire's eyes bugged out as he drank the potent mix. He let out his breath slowly. "No. That good."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I timed it. It takes exactly two tenths of a second to press that little button. 

Who here doesn't have two tenths of a second to spare???


	8. The World Is Weird Without You

AN: Have I ever told you guys how much I love you? No? Well, probably because that would be really, really weird. So I'm not going to. But I am going to write **THANKS **in really big letters (really much more impressive in Microsoft Word…). I probably would have stopped writing this story long ago had it not been for great reviews. Let's just assume that is still the case… *wicked grin* All right, I'm done, I swear. If the chapters get a little, er, odd this next week, it's because I got suckered into working at a vacation bible school with twelve overly hyper six year olds in the mornings. Particularly ironic, considering I don't even practice that religion… So if a six year old on sugar pops up in the story, just go with it, okay? Okay. Also, beware; I've been listening to Dead Milkmen and eating hostess imposter products on my little road trip… Enjoy!

PS: Holly crap this chapter got long! Didn't really mean to do that…I finally realized I only had fifteen more chapters to get to a horribly, horribly dramatic finale. Got to get cracking…

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss. 

The World Is Weird Without You

            The midday sunlight reflected off of the white blonde hair. Rolling over, he draped his arm around the soft figure beside him. His eyelids flew open as he realized it was a rolled up carpet. Sitting up confusedly, Spike found himself lounging in a dumpster. _That must have been some drink…_ He scratched his head in confusion, and looked at his watch. _All right, it's only…two o'clock…wonder what day it is?_ He figured it was about time to head back to the apartment. _Assuming I can figure out where that is, of course._ Climbing out of his make shift bed, he winced as the pain shot through his stiffened muscles. He made a mental note to stop sleeping in garbage disposal containers. 

            Two hours later he was exactly five blocks south of where he started. _I officially hate this sodding city. Too many bloody back roads and alleyways and turnarounds…_ Muttering various profanities, he approached a young man wandering down the sidewalk. "Excuse me. You wouldn't happen to know the way to Charles Street, would you?"

            The man eyed him suspiciously. "Charles Street. Yeah, it's on the other side of town." Sighing, he pointed in the direction Spike had come from. "If you keep going down this street, you'll pass a…a Target, Wal-Mart, something like that." Frowning in concentration, he started gesturing with his hands. "Turn at that corner, left, go for maybe…two miles, you'll come across Charles." 

            "Thanks, mate." Spike waved, turning around.

            "No problem." 

            Spike shoved his hands into his pockets, whistling happily. _Wait-since when do I whistle?_ Pausing, he started murmuring the song out loud. "One Saturday I took a walk to Zipper Head…" With a little smile he added in his own lines. "I got so drunk and lost and made a trash dumpster my bed…Slayer Girls (!), on Charles Street, the walk is gonna hurt my feet, it's miles 'cross the town, just because I threw that damn drink down…" He ground to a halt as his fingers brushed foreign objects. He pulled a noisemaker and a woman's eyelash curler from the duster. "What the hell…?" Summing up his questions with a long, exasperated sigh, he tilted his head back to look at the clouds. "The world is weird without you, Buffy." 

            An hour later, he returned to the apartment of four very concerned Slayers. After being the center of attention for exactly five minutes, he was ordered to call up Giles and reassure him he was all right. 

            "He was worried," Kennedy cautioned.

            _The Watcher? Worried about me?_ Spike couldn't help smiling. _My my, how things change. _

"Hello…Yes, me…none of your bloody business!" He puffed himself up at the Watcher's comment. "No…No, we're just fine here. Yes. Say-have you gotten a call from the Africa girls yet…hmmm. Well, I'm sure they'll call soon-…oh…" 

            The girls watched as Spike's face fell. 

"What's happening?" Shannon whispered.

"Shh!" Rona waved her hands at her, attempting to listen in on the one sided conversation. 

            "You're sure…how long…" He lowered his voice. "Do me a favor-forward the letter I sent you…yeah…thanks mate." He nodded to himself. "Mm-hmm…right. We will. Back before you know it…yeah, I'll have one of 'em call…No problem." He hung up the phone, turning to notice his audience.

            "What happened?" Vi asked innocently.

            Spike glared at them. "Giles said I was allowed to duct tape the bathroom door shut if you ever listened in on my phone conversations again." 

            Shannon grunted, standing up. "Told you he'd never admit it."

            His eyes narrowed further. "Admit what?"

            Rona shrugged, looking down. Finally, Kennedy spoke up for the group. "That you were worried about Buffy."

            If possible, his gaze became harder than before. "I wasn't worried." He turned away, muttering, "I _am_ worried."

            They all jumped as the phone rang. When they realized Spike wasn't going to get it, Rona lifted it from its cradle. "Hello?"

            "Hi!" 

            "Oh, hey." Rona smiled at the sound of Dawn's voice.

            "Um…I was wondering…is Spike there?"

            "Yeah." Rona cupped the mouthpiece in her hand. "Spike."       

            He looked up from where he had slumped in the recliner. "What."

            "Dawn's on the phone." She held it out as he stood, sighing.

            " 'ello Nibblet." He took the phone, sending a warning look to the girls still brave enough to remain in the room with his cranky, hung-over self.

            "Hi Spike! How's it going over there?"

            "Not bad. I killed some vampires," he offered.

            "That's always good. Us, we've been mighty bored."

            "Find out anything about those demons?" Spike tried to stretch the cord around the corner, cursing not having a cordless available. 

            "Um, yeah, we did." Her voice got quieter over the line. "Not exactly the reason I called."

            He gave up on his journey to the kitchen, more concerned about the young Summers girl. "Something wrong, Bit?"

            "No…"

            "Come on." His voice softened. "You know you can tell me anything."

            "…I don't know. I mean, what, they're just possessed kangaroos, right? Nothing to get worried over, right?"

            He bit his tongue. "Don't know what to tell you, pet. It'd be a lie to say I'm not worrying about our favorite girl." 

            "Well, that's different," she protested. "Seriously, you worry when she goes to the drug store."

            "Drivers these days are dangerous!" Spike stated in defense. "…But that's beyond the point."

            He heard her sigh. "I just want to know everything's going to be okay. I want to know that you and Buffy and Faith and Kennedy and Rona and-"

            "Spare us the roster, please," Spike joked.

            "-I want to know you're all going to not die," she whispered. "I want you guys home."

            His heart broke at her saddened tone. "I'll be back soon Bit. Just have a few more demons to deal with."

            "You promise?"

            "Promise."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Buffy woke to Faith standing next to her bed, chuckling. She rubbed her eyes sleepily. "Shut up." 

            Faith cracked, laughing outright. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry." She whipped at the tears rolling down her cheeks. "I woke up and look over and there's B, getting all cuddly with the couch cushion…" She struggled to control herself. "I'm alright. Really." She managed to hold a semi-serious expression before exploding in giggles again.

            "What?" Buffy pouted as she shoved the cushion away.

            "Oh man." Faith grinned evilly. "I was just seeing Spike come in here and see you with that cushion…" Helplessly, she toppled over into the sheets.

            Buffy got out of the bed, ignoring the titters coming from it. 

            Sitting up abruptly, Faith looked about the room. "I'm hungry. Are you hungry?"

            Buffy nodded. 

            "Well, let's go get something to eat then!" 

            She shrugged, grabbing the room key. "Fine. But you're paying for it."

            "Oh no." Faith grabbed the credit card. "The Council pays for it."

            Eyeing Faith, she closed the door behind them. "You're loving that too much." 

            "You bet I am!" She hopped into the elevator, pushing the floor button. "I figure, it's a limitless stock of cash from an organization that has unlimited amounts of cash." She shrugged. "And being as we saved the, oh, two people who are still alive in this organization, I figure they owe us these…services." 

            "Fine, fine." Buffy shrugged the subject off. She was really hungry. They walked across the street to what appeared to be a Nigerian supermarket. 

            A worried look crossed Faith's face as she examined a package of what was supposedly food. "Uh, B, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore…"

            She looked around for anything that looked remotely familiar. _All this time, teachers are trying to tell me that globalization has ruined this country…_She picked up a can of what looked like eyeballs. _I'll have to assure them they're wrong._

            "Hey." Faith stepped up to one of the employees. "Um, do you have any, you know, American food?"

            The man grinned at her, hurrying into a back room. The girls darted after him. Both looked adequately surprised as he came out, and handed them a package of Little Debbie Swiss Rolls. "American!"

            Buffy offered him a smile. "Yeah. American." She looked over to Faith, struggling with the laugh that was threatening in her throat.

            "Thanks," Faith managed weakly. They hurried to purchase their snack cakes, barely making it out the door before snorting with amusement. "Hey, want a Swiss Roll?"

            Buffy took the treat, smirking. "American."

            "American," Faith agreed, closing her eyes as she sunk her teeth into one.

            As they wandered back to the hotel, occasionally giggling about the Swiss Rolls, Buffy tried to think what Spike would have done it such a situation. _Actually, I don't think such a perfectly odd thing could happen,_ she mused. _He's exciting enough-no need to throw random chocolates into the mix of things._ She dwelled on the image of him nibbling chocolate crumbs from his fingers as they went upstairs to gather their bags. _The world is weird without you here._

            "So." Buffy looked over at Faith as they sat in the bus depot. "The last place you saw these demons was…?"

            "Out past Kano." Faith shrugged. "It's kind of a…plain-sy, Lion King sort of setting. Picture mud shacks and the villagers wearing hyena skins, the whole lot." 

            "Hmm." She pondered for a minute. "We should call Giles." 

            Faith raised an eyebrow. "Because he knows exactly how to give us directions to Kano."

            "No." She stood up, looking around for a phone booth. "Because he might have some information on how to kill these things." 

            "You know, once we call him it's not like we're going to be able to reach him again," Faith reasoned. "I mean, unless we get one of those super call-from-anywhere cell phones they're advertising everywhere…"

            Buffy eyed the Slayer. "You still have that credit card?"

            She grinned.

            _BRRRING_

"Come on, pick up…" Buffy cursed at Giles's speed issues quietly as Faith watched.

            _BRRRING_

            "Maybe he's, you know, not there." She shrugged. "He might have a life-nah." She shook her head, ignoring Buffy's glare.

            _BRRRING_

            "Hello?" A horribly sleepy, British voice answered the phone.

            "Giles?" 

            "Buffy." 

            "Hi." She smiled. "I'm sorry, I'm not very good at the whole time-thing…"

            "It's alright." She swore, she could hear him stretching. "Is everything alright?"

            "Yeah, we're fine." Twirling a bit of hair around her finger, she watched a bird fly past. "We got a cell phone."

            "Oh."

            "Did you get anymore information about our kangaroos?" 

            "Well, they aren't kangaroos." Was that the sound of a handkerchief rubbing on glasses she heard? "From our many, many hours of painful, back breaking research-"

            "I said thank you for that, right?" She cut in.

            "Yes-we were able to conclude it was some sort of evolved demon of the Betugk Swetuk variety."

            "The Beet-ooh-guck-Swee-too-kah?" She wrinkled her nose.

            A smile crept into his voice. "No." He pronounced it for her. "The Bate-ugh Swa-took. A being that, until now, has been known to stand at about seven feet tall, upright, with a tan hide and long, curved claws." A small sigh was heard. "Apparently these demons somehow received the ability to produce venom, along with a change in their bone structure." 

            "Well, what kills it?" Buffy tilted her head curiously as Faith mouthed '_What the hell is a beet-ooh-guck-swee-too-kah?'_ She pressed the cell phone to her ear with her shoulder, holding up her hands and taking a few small jumps in an attempt to imitate a kangaroo.  After getting a bizarre look, followed by one of understanding, Faith nodded.

            "These demons can only be killed by "_A one tool that was crafted before the time of steel._""

            She blinked. "You're telling me I can kill these things by staking them?"

            "Well-actually now that I think about it…" His voice trailed off for several seconds. "It could very well work. Wood, hypothetically, was used as a weapon before steel…but, mind you, that was before they became what they are now." Another pause. "For all we know there may be no way of killing them." 

            "I'll find a way." Her voice filled with a determination that caused Faith to look up from the cell phone instruction booklet she was paging through.

            "Buffy-"

            "We have to go," she interrupted. "The number for the cell phone is 729-442-8339. Call us again when you have something."

            Another sigh. "Alright. Be careful, Buffy."

            "I will."

            For a few seconds the line was silent. "Buffy…do you have a mailing address?"

            She started at the random question. "Huh?"

            "An address to send mail to."

            "Ummm…." She blinked a few times. "I guess if you wanted to send it to the American Embassy…"

            "Alright." He cleared his throat. "Now, let's make this clear. You must promise not to fight these demons until you have a sure fire way to kill them. Can you do that?"

            Slowly, she nodded. "I promise…Bye." Quietly, she put the cell phone in her pocket.

            "Ready?" Faith looked over to her as their bus pulled into the lot.

            "Let's go." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I know you like this story…I know you'll probably review it…and I know I am a Classic Insecure Author (and you don't want the CIA upset now, do you?). So for my own little amusement, I put a riddle in the story. It's horribly deliberately placed, so if you A) figure out what it is, and B) figure out what it says, please, review and tell me! 

Or review because you love the story!

Or review because you want me to shut up.

:)


	9. Prophecy

AN: Whoever thought the idea of putting more than one kindergartener in one place at the same time should be shot. I have been jumped on, choked, sat on, stepped on, tripped, tackled, corralled, clung to, ridden, drug, and had the larger portion of my hair pulled out. And then I had to ride my bike the two miles home in a downpour. And I have a really, really annoying song stuck in my head _(Deeeeeeeeeeeeper with god…I'm going deeeeeeeeeeeper with god…)_. So I'm turning to the only thing that gives me comfort: Spuffy! I'll write until my head stops ringing. :) 

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss. 

Prophesy

            _***She woke with a start as he shook her gently. "Come on, love. Our stop." Sleepily, she stood up, leaning on him as they tripped off the bus. They got their bags quietly, wandering to the overhang to get away from the bright sunlight._

_            "What do you have in here, steel blocks?" He joked as he dropped a medium sized bag._

_            "No," She said with a serious tone. "I have stakes."_

_            "Stakes?" His eyebrows went up. "Love, these aren't vampires."_

_            She took a step closer, drowning in his blue eyes. "I know," she murmured. "Giles said they could be killed by a tool crafted before steel. Wood seemed logical so…" _

_            He smiled sadly, brushing his fingers against her cheekbone. "That's not it, Buffy." He leaned in, catching her with a soft, loving kiss. She warmed against him, shifting closer and humming. He opened his eyes again, gazing at her perfect face. "You have to look deeper."_

_            Her forehead wrinkled. "What do you mean?" She pouted slightly, entwining her fingers in his. "I don't understand."_

_            He smirked at her. "You will." He kissed her again, turning to leave._

_            "Wait!" She cried out. "I don't understand! What is it supposed to mean?"_

_            He tilted his head, pausing. "A one tool that was crafted before the time of steel. A one tool…" His voice trailed off as he walked off into the distance. "A One tool…"_

_            "Don't leave!" She called again, but he had vanished. A chill swept through the region, giving her a convenient excuse for her shivering. ***_

            She woke with a start as she shook her gently. "Come on, B. Time to go kick some demon ass."

            Rubbing her eyes sleepily, she got her things and trailed after Faith off the bus. All the while thinking of her dream. _It could have just been a dream, Buffy. You know, the kind you have all the time?_

_            But I'm the Slayer. I have prophetic dreams._

_            How do you know this was one of them? You just miss him, and you were remembering your talk with Giles._

            But it seemed so real… 

            "B? You there, B?"

            _It seemed so real…_

            She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. "Yeah. Just…thinking." 

            "Right. Thinking." Faith nodded. "That's a good thing to do every now and again." 

            "Ummm…" Buffy looked at the overhang wearily. "Are we going to need a guide or an elephant or what."

            The girl grinned. "No. I think I can remember the way. Might help if we rented a Jeep, though."

            She squinted into the sun. "Can we do that? This place seems pretty much…deserted."

            Faith nodded again. "Yeah. There's an expedition service, you know, for those vacationers on safari…" She gestured to a building sitting a few hundred feet in the horizon. "They can lend us one." With a sigh, she started out towards it.

            "Good morning, ladies!" A man with a rich accent greeted them as they stepped into the cool room.

            Buffy blinked. "Is it morning?"

            He laughed. "I can see you have been traveling. Is there anything we can help you with today?"

            "Actually, you can." Faith leaned against the counter casually. "We need to rent a Jeep."            

            "A Jeep?" He cocked his head, looking at her curiously. "What for?"

            Her eyes widened slightly. "Ah, you know, we were going to go out into the plains a bit, see the sights."

            He shook his head slowly. "It isn't wise to go without a guide. And there have been reports of animals attacking our customers once you get beyond our general trails." 

            Buffy's ears perked up. "Attacks?"

            He nodded sadly. "Yes. A wife and husband were found just last week."

            She narrowed her eyes. "They died."

            He gestured for her to keep quiet. "It is not wise to raise a panic among the tourists. It tends to make things worse."

            She agreed silently. "Yes. Actually, we were sent to look into your little…problem. Try and study these…creatures."

            "You have credentials?" He crossed his arms across his chest. "I can't have our company responsible for any more liabilities." 

            Buffy's mind spun as she reached into her bag. "Of course." She grabbed her driver's license and the Council's card, pressing them closely together in her palm while hiding the overlapping edge. Quickly, she flashed it at him. 

            He shrugged. "Fine. You'll need to sign these papers…" Quickly, the legalities of renting the vehicle were worked out and the girls were escorted to their new mode of transportation. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask." 

            "Okay. Thanks." With a final thought, she rushed back to him. "Um, do you think we could have our mail forwarded here?"

            "Um, sure…" He looked at her uncertainly.

            "Thanks." She smiled before going back to the Jeep and the questions from Faith.

            "What was that about?"

            With a shake of her head, she pulled her seatbelt tighter as Faith started out into the tall grass. "I really wish I knew." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Tonight. We'll do it tonight."

            "Can you get it to work that fast?"

            "And we need someone to pick it up…"

            "I already sent someone. It will all be in place by nightfall." 

            "But what about the Slayers?"

            "Don't even worry about them. I'm taking care of it."

            "How?"

            "Let's just say they'll be-" The vampire stopped talking abruptly as he noticed the shadowy figure sitting at the bar opposite him. Slowly, he stood and edged over. "Hey, you have a problem?"

            Spike looked up from his beer. "None whatsoever." 

            The vampire growled. "Because it seemed to me you were listening in on a private conversation. Didn't you mother ever teach you good manners?"

            He drew back, coughing. "Didn't yours teach you good hygiene?" Unsurprised as the minion pushed him off the stool, he stood to face him. "Seriously. It's called soap."

            The vamp glared at him. "I wouldn't be saying that if I were you."

            "Really now."

            "You don't have the slightest idea what you're messing with," he gloated.

            Spike yawned. "Okay. Try me."

            Without a word he vamped out, his eyes glowing yellow. 

            Spike blinked. "I thought you said I didn't have the slightest idea what I was messing with." 

            He blinked confusedly for a moment. "I'm awful hungry, you know…"

            "Me too." He punched him in the stomach, sending him sprawling back into the wall. "I'm not complaining, though."

            De-vamping, the being looked up at him wearily. "What are you?"

            "Just a bloke out for a drink," he replied with a shrug. "Not my fault if I pick up on the rumor there's going to be some action as of tonight."

            "You want in?" It asked incredulously. 

            He smirked, reaching up to secure the cap to his head more firmly. _Gotta love undercover work…_ "You _want _me in."

            The other vampires stood up, circling him. "Do we."

            He nodded seriously. "I'm the only one who can help you."

            The leader stood, eyeing him. "Help us with what."

            Spike raised his eyebrows. "Oh, come on. Your entire existences scream 'ex-minion'. I bet this is your first job running solo, is it not?" Pausing for confirmation, he continued. "None of you have even seen a Slayer. I have."

            "You have?" Their eyes took on a look of admiring.

            "Yeah. Fought with her back in the good old days. Nearly beat her, too."          

            "What stopped you?"

            "Good old days?"

            "And she didn't stake you?"

            He smiled. "We called it a draw. She had other evils to fight; I was just trying to get home. Considering the entire town was going nuts what with the trials and burnings, I was a small fish."

            "You're saying you fought a Slayer in Salem?" One asked.

            He nodded. "I did. Best fight of my life. Didn't kill her if for no other reason than to get to fight her again." 

            "And you want to help us."       

            "I want in on the fight," he corrected. "Might help if I knew where exactly you'll be." 

            They looked around suspiciously. "In the abandoned construction site. We'll have others lure them there, and then the rest of us will jump out and surprise them."

            "How many." Spike struggled to watch their faces through his sunglasses.

            "We've taken some hits. By tonight, we might have sixty." He shrugged. "Only four girls. And once they're gone the town-and the mouth-are ours." 

            He drew in a sharp breath. "Right. I'll be there after sunset."

            They nodded. He grabbed the blanket he had set on his stool, draping it over himself as he ran out the door. A few blocks down, he turned into an alley and slowed. He removed the disguise, reaching for the bag he had stowed his duster in. "I'll be there after sunset, for sure. I'll be there bloody before." 

Arriving back at the apartment, he was attacked by a frantic Vi. "Spike, thank god you're home."

            "What happened." He rushed up to her.

            "Giles has been calling and calling. He won't tell me anything." She handed him the phone.

            _BRR-_ "Hello."

            "Giles." 

            "Spike. I tried to call you earlier-"

            "What. The. Hell. Happened." He gripped the phone so tightly his knuckles turned white. _Dear god, not Buffy. Please, please let Buffy be okay…_

            "Buffy's fine," he said quickly. "But we've discovered something quite, well, odd."

            "What is it!" He clenched and unclenched the muscles in his jaw. _I swear, I'll tear this man limb from limb…_

            "Dawn." Spike froze. "She's…well, she's started to glow."

            "Glow?"

            "I talked to Willow. Apparently it's part of a locating spell." He paused. "Someone's trying to find Dawn."

            "What in bleeding hell do they want with Dawn?" He bit his lip, pacing around the room. 

            "Spike-your vampires, do you know their plans? Do you know if they plan to do anything besides take over the town?"

            His eyes bugged out of his head as he recalled bits of their conversation. 

            _"Can you get it to work that fast?"_

            "And we need someone to pick it up…" 

_            "I already sent someone. It will all be in place by nightfall."_

_            "Once they're gone the town-and the mouth-are ours."_

            "Shit!" He gasped. "They want her. They're going to do something with the mouth. "They think she's still the Key."

            "No…" Giles ran his hands through his hair. "They located the Key. It just still happens to be Dawn." 

            "You need to get her out of there!" Spike bellowed into the phone. "Now!"

            "Alright." He turned from the phone, though his words were still heard. "Dawn…get in the car…I can't-please, just go…" His voice became clearer again. "They won't know we're here, Spike. It's the spell. They'll follow us anywhere-" 

            He jumped as a loud noise interrupted Giles.  "Giles!" The phone was silent. "Giles!" 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Are we there yet?" Buffy complained, stretching her arms over her head.

            Faith glared at her. "Hey. Do you want to drive?"

            Buffy was about to respond when she screamed. "Faith!"

            Faith tried to jerk the car to the side as a creature bounded out of the underbrush at the car. Unable to stop, she hit it. 

            She pulled her hands from her face. "…Did we kill it?" In answer, long claws pierced the bottom of the Jeep, reaching up and tearing at her legs. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Oh my god." Willow jumped up, staring at the metal bound book before her. "Oh my god!" With shaky hands, she lifted her translated prophecy.

            _Into each time before one was sent to save the world. One to balance the forces of light and of dark. Among them, there will be one unlike the rest. The One. She is the way to maintaining the balance for which they have fought. She will be beyond goodness or evil. To save her, the champion of heart will rise. Dark will lighten and the world will be anew as it never was. He will give himself to save them all. There will be a great battle, in which he will perish. The forces of evil will bide their time under the Earth, waiting for the time when they might rise again. The One and her army will be spread far and wide. They will face their own evils as they would-alone. Only together can the balance be achieved. _

            Alone will they go towards small victories. Alone shall they die. Without completion, each shall spiral down into the firey pits as evil grows impatient and shows itself. Risen again, he will fight for one dear. The armies of the dark will keep hidden the answer, keep hidden the key to their being. They shall rise up in their numbers and be spread to keep apart the forces. As long as they remain unbalanced, so shall the armies succeed in their quests. Dark is held as long as light remains; without her it devours. And the world will become hell. She will fight, but she will fall. Without heart, she will fall.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Do you like? Are you lost? Any questions? Any comments? Anything? Please?

Review!


	10. Fade To Black

AN:  Ugh…So…Tired…Went to watch kiddies…Got home…Got the insane idea in my head to completely rearrange my bedroom…Tiredness overcame us halfway through…So now we're sitting in our comfy chair, trying to type without having to sit up. Hmm. Somewhere through that I turned into a plural. *shrug* Don't care. I'll care when it starts affecting my Spuffy goodness. That hasn't happened…I don't think…has it happened? Hmm. 

            Some of you indicated you were confused by the goings on in the last chapter (i.e. what Willow was talking about). It is a continuation of a mini-plot I started in After the End (chapter 20 I think…) that deals with an ancient metal-bound book Kennedy and Buffy came across one night while patrolling. Giles and Willow are trying to translate it (and having trouble) but last chapter Willow came across information about the upcoming battles Spike and Buffy were facing. The translations will continue, eventually connecting all the situations/problems in the story very conveniently. Yes, I actually do know what I'm doing! Scary, isn't it? If you're still lost go back and read the last, oh, five chapters of After the End again. 

            Also, I apologize, this chapter is very, how shall we say, fight-ish…*grin* 

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss. 

Fade To Black

            "Oh god…" Willow stood up, rushing to the phone. "Oh god oh god oh god…."

            _BRRRING_

            "Oh god oh god oh god oh god…"

            _BRRING_

"Oh god oh god oh god…"

            _BRRI-_"Hello?"

            "Spike?"

            "Willow?" Spike tapped his foot quickly. "This is a bad time, Red."

            "Spike! The translation!" She gasped.

            "Red-listen closely," he hissed. "They have Dawn. They have Giles. They're coming back here. I have to go and find them."

            "What?!?" She screeched. _Risen again, he will fight for one dear._ "It's…its part of the prophecy. It says 'he will fight for one dear'."

            "Does it say if I win?" He snapped.  
            "No…"

            "I have to go." He started to hang up.

            Willow looked back to her paper. "No! Buffy! It says something about Buffy!"

            "What does it say?" He asked, fearful.

            "It says…" She hesitated. " 'She will fight, but she will fall. Without heart, she will fall.'." 

            "Right." He bit his tongue hard. _Don't loose it now, mate. Got to get the Nibblet. _"I have to find Dawn, Red. Try calling her. Please."

            "Yeah…call Buffy…Okay, I'll call them." She nodded to herself as she heard the harsh click as he set down the phone. "Okay." She looked down at the phone number Giles had given her. "Okay."

            _BRRRING_

_            BRRING_

_            BRRING_

"Come on Buffy, now's not the time to loose your phone," she joked nervously.

            _BRRING_

"Hi-"

            "Buffy!"

            "-You've obviously called us when we couldn't come to the phone, so if you want to leave your name and number we'll be sure to call you back." Buffy's voice sounded falsely happy as the recording played. "Thanks!"

            _BEEP_

            "Hi, Buffy, it's me, Willow…" She stammered into the phone. "Um, could you, please, call me, we're really worried, please-" The message stopped abruptly, leaving her with an empty dial tone. "Buffy," she whispered. Remembering Dawn and Giles, she hurried to his collection of books. Pulling down one labeled _Harnessing The Light_, she started to chant. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Dawn!" Giles rushed from the phone, scrambling to the other room. She was cowering in a corner as a large rock smashed through the window.

            "Throw out the Key and no one gets hurt!" A voice called.

            Giles cautiously looked out. Five vampires stood by the window, another three by the door. "Never."

            "Oh really?" The leader sneered, stepping aside to reveal a Hask demon. The being slowly approached the doorway. "Let's just see about that."

            "Dawn." He turned to her quickly. "Run upstairs. Go to one of the windows and wait for me. If I'm not there in two minutes, you need to run."

            She grasped his hand firmly. "I'm not leaving you."

            "Oh yes you are." With a sound shove, he sent her to the stairs. "Go!" His head snapped back to the door as it was kicked in.

            The Hask demon stood in the doorway, grinning evilly. It reached one of its large hands out, coming after him.

            "Bloody brilliant." He grabbed a lamp. "Stay back." He shifted it from hand to hand. The being's grin spread. "Don't make me hurt you."

            With a cry, the demon leapt forward and sent him sprawling back. He landed with a bang against the wall. "I will not pass out. I'm not going to pass out!" He was drug to his feet. Smashing the lamp against its face, he tried to run for the back door in hopes of it following him. Instead, it grabbed him by the neck and forced him up the stairs.

            " 'Ere ghurli ghurli ghurl…" It garbled. It drew blood from Giles's neck as it pressed its nails in. 

            "You'll…never…" He gasped, kicking wildly as his vision blurred. _I will not pass out. I will not pass…_

            "GILES!" She screamed, charging at it with an axe. She managed to cut its arm before being swept up in the deadly embrace. "Let me go!"

            "Hey, don't kill her," one of the vampires outside cautioned. 

            "Cun uy kyll im?" It questioned, lifting Giles from his feet.

            The vampire shrugged. "Sure. Go for it."

            "AWAY." A voice surged through the house. The demon flew back, smashing down another door.

            "Forget him! Come on!" 

            Quickly, he stood and threw Dawn out the window. 

            "FORCES OF LIGHT, FORCES OF DAY, PROTECT THE GIRL, STAY AWAY."            

            The vampire who held Dawn let out a yelp as he flew back, finally landing some hundred feet from the house. "It's some sort of spell!"

            "We have our own spells," another boasted. He turned to the oldest vampire amongst them. 

            "It's a witch," he said simply. He held out his hand. "LET HER BE KNOWN!"

            Willow suddenly appeared in the middle of the street, looking disoriented. 

            The vampire held out both his arms. A dark mist began to swirl around her. 

            "Mother-" She staggered as a powerful blow hit her. "Goddess…Come into me…" Slowly, a white orb replaced the dark light. She turned her gaze to the vampire. "Let the evil be extinguished." He winced. "Let the evil do no wrong." Her light grew. "Let the darkest forces quiver." The minions began to drop around her, grasping at their hearts as they burned from within. "Let my powers grow strong." Her eyes began to change as she struggled with the energy flowing through her. She shook her head, harnessing it. "_Let my powers grow strong!"_

            The master vampire struggled through the barrier she had created. Tilting his head back, he called to the sky. "Osiris!" His eyes began to glow red. "Fill my being. Take my body. Take her soul." Clouds of dark energy wafted around him, billowing out and weakening her. A smirk spread on his face as her light began to drift to him.

            "AWAY." He stumbled back a few feet. Recovering quickly, he jumped to land beside her. "Sleep, girl." He put a hand on her shoulder.

            "NO." She managed to force him back. He returned, again placing his hand upon her. Taking her energy. Taking her power. "No…" Her eyes glowed fiercely before she collapsed to her knees, gasping for breath.

            He drained her until she was no more than a softly beating heart upon the street. His eyes danced with the new resource he suddenly possessed.             

            "Willow?" Dawn cried, struggling with her captors. 

            "QUIET." He rather liked this new tone of his voice. Her eyes widened when no noise escaped her lips. He looked about the group smugly. Approaching her, he took her hand. She grew quiet beneath his touch. "HOME." 

            As the other vampires gaped, they disappeared. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "B!" Faith jumped up as Buffy kicked at the demon's claws.

            She winced as another long cut sliced down her leg. "Run," she grunted.

            In response, she reached over and wrapped her hands around the creature's arm. "Get out," she urged.

            Buffy jumped out, bending down to grab the thing's tail. It hissed, forgetting Faith temporarily to go after her. _Here Betugk_ _Betugk Betugk…_ "What, is that all you've got?" She grunted as it kicked her back. "I have kicked demon ass before-" She called, delivering a punch with each over-pronounced word. "And. I. Will. Kick. Yours." 

            "You need new slay-sayings, girl." Faith jumped over the car, landing a nice flying kick to the demon's back. As it stood again both girls leapt on it, trying to stay away from those damn claws. "Honestly. It sounds like-" She went flying, crashing against a patch of grass. "-a bad wrestling catch phrase." 

            Buffy would have liked to respond to that, but instead she was granted a near shish-cabob experience. _Damn claws._ "Faith," she called. "Go…get a sword…we need to cut-" She back flipped onto the hood of the Jeep. "Those claws off." 

            "One nail job on the way." She popped open the back and threw  a sword towards her. "Catch!"

            Grabbing the sword, she plunged it into the Betugk's arm. _Oh right. Steel no kill. _Re-aiming, she managed to take off a hand. It rolled from the car, causing Faith to raise an eyebrow. "What, are you just going to stand there and-" Her eyes bugged out as the remaining claw plunged deep into her side. "…Watch…?" _No Buffy. Don't pass out. Bad Buffy. Don't. _She pressed a hand over her wound as the world began to fade to blank. "No…" 

            Faith grabbed her by the wrist, throwing her a good distance from the fight. Dodging blows and trying desperately to remove that other hand, she couldn't tell if Buffy was still conscious. "B?" Silence. "B?!?" She groaned as her cheek was cut open. "Damn man, you had to go for the face." She stood again, walking towards it determinedly. "I hate that!" With a quick gesture she removed the other hand. A brief smile stole her face at the demon's expression. It dissipated as she started to feel woozy. "Oh yeah…forgot about that…venom…" Tripping over her feet, she took the stake from her jacket and lunged blindly. She never saw where it landed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            He ran as fast as his legs could carry him to the construction site. _Dear god, or whoever's up there, please, don't let Dawn…_ He couldn't finish the thought. And he absolutely refused to think about Buffy. About whether or not she was hurt. Or alive…He shook his head. _She's brave. She can face this. She needs to face this. Besides, not like I can help at the moment. What with being here and all. Nothing I can do for her. I need to find-_

            He tripped over the two figures that suddenly appeared in front of him. "What the hell…" His eyes widened as he realized one was Dawn. "Bit!"

            She looked up, her eyes filled with sadness. 

            "The girl is a little…" the vampire grinned. "Tongue tied." 

            He felt himself slipping into game face. _Whoops._ "Let. Her. Go."

            "Or what?" He looked at him amusedly. The question was answered as he was struck with a series of unnaturally fast punches and kicks. 

            It took Spike exactly two seconds to realize that this vampire was a little bit different than the others. Three more to notice the dark magics crackling around them. "I can't believe this. You're a _warlock_ vampire?" 

            He grinned. 

            "Hey! Hey!" The vampires from the bar approached, stepping in between the two.

            The master vampire looked at them confusedly. "What?"

            "He's with us. Fighting on our side."

            Dawn raised a noiseless eyebrow as Spike quickly shook his head to her. 

            "Ah." He turned to look at the blond vampire. "Wait-then why…"

            Spike shrugged. "My mistake. Thought you were trying to take our…prize..." 

            The vampire blinked at him, mentally believing him to be the daftest being on the planet. "Well then." Abruptly, he turned to Dawn. And pulled a stake from his pocket. "I don't see why we can't kill her right here." He looked over to Spike, daring him to defy. 

            One of the others nodded. "She's The Key. We don't have to be directly over the seal, I'd bet."

            "Actually, we do." He looked down, scuffing at the loose dirt with his toe thoughtfully. "And we are." 

            "Oh," the others muttered.

            He pulled back the stake dramatically. "Goodbye, girly." 

            Spike jumped in front of her silently as the stake plunged down.

            "SPIKE!" Dawn screamed, suddenly freed from the spell, as the vampire jerked back against her. She held his arms until he was balanced again. "Spike?" 

            Slowly, he tilted his head to look at the stake firmly implanted in his heart. "Bloody hell," he muttered as the world faded to black. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Okay okay, put down you're crossbows and axes, please. Do you think I, a loyal Spuffy fan, would allow both (or either, for that matter) of the characters we love oh-so-much to perish? Do you think I care so little? *sniff sniff* There is a valid reason I did this. I swear. Read the next chapter-you'll understand. 

Review also!


	11. With Candy Hearts

AN: Out of fear you guys would stone me to death, I'm writing this one and ch.10 together. Back to back. No waiting. And thus, no time for you to get really, _really_ pissed. *grin* Lots of surprises in this, thankfully, so be sure to read and review it!

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss. 

With Candy Hearts

            "Spike?" Dawn frowned at the vampire slumped by her feet. "You're…not poofing." 

            He opened one eye, looking around in obvious surprise. "Guess not." He looked back down at the stake again before looking up at the vampire in front of him. "Plastic?"

            It said nothing. The fear in its eyes said it all. 

            "Right." He sighed, tentatively pulling the wood from his flesh. Dawn winced at the ensuing _slurp_ noise. 

            She kneeled down, looking at the wound. "…Does it hurt?"

            "What do you think?" He snapped. The blood, now free from its limitations, poured steadily down his chest. Already he was feeling light-headed. _Since when do I feel light-headed?_

            "Hey." One of the now-forgotten vampires glared at them. "Are we going to do this or what?"

            "Oh yeah." The master vampire shook his head. He grabbed onto Dawn's arm.

            "I wouldn't do that if I were you," Rona warned as she came out from the alley. "That girl can really scream if she wants to."

            The clan growled as the other Slayers came out from their hiding spots. 

            "Let's do this." Kennedy ran through the crowd, leaving a trail of dust.

            Vi easily ducted a blow, staking two vamps in the process. "It's almost too easy when there are this many," she mused.

            "Har har." Spike coughed. "Hey, anyone think they could lend a hand?" He let his question go unanswered. Sighing, he managed to drag himself over to the shadows to watch the fight. _Not much else I can do at the moment._ He removed the duster, tearing at his sleeves to press into the hole in his chest. _This is interesting. Very interesting._ Without batting an eye he staked a vampire that stumbled into his lap. 

            "Seven…eight nine ten…" Shannon called out gleefully. "Eleven…" A grunt escaped her as she fell to the ground.

            "Stake!" Rona held her hand out as her weapon was kicked across the street.

            Vi threw one, managing to catch another vampire in the process.

            "Twelve…"

            "How many are there, anyway?" Kennedy asked.

            "Sixty," Spike muttered quietly. This was really starting to hurt. _Great. I'm not going to explode into a cloud of dust. I'm going to die the old fashioned way._ He watched the vampire that held Dawn intently. _Hey you._

The vampire's head shot up.

            _Well well well…_ Spike smirked. _A psychic vampire. You're just full of surprises, aren't you?_

            He looked around before settling his gaze on Spike. _You will know death._

            _I know it quite well, actually._ He struggled to his feet. _Let the Bit go._ Laughter filled his mind. 

            _You think you can defeat me? I am more powerful than anything you have ever dreamed. _He gripped the terrified teen tighter. _Thanks to that little red snack._

            Spike took a deep, unnecessary breath. _Willow._

            _Oh, is that her name?_

            _Damn, forgot about that._ He tilted his head. Tried desperately not to think about the Slayer who was creeping up behind him. _You think you're the Big Bad?_

_            We will rule this town._ Glaring at Spike, he didn't notice Dawn's awareness to Rona and her stake.

_            That's what they all say._ He smirked at the shocked expression on the vampire's face as he turned to dust. Dawn, now free, jogged over to where he leaned against the building.

            "Are you alright?" Her fingers rested gently against his chest as if she was afraid of hurting him. He shrugged, wincing at the pain it caused him. "We have to get you cleaned up."

            "No." He pulled two stakes from his duster, handing her one. "We finish this." He turned to look out into the construction site.

            "Seventeen…"

            "Will you shut up?" Vi staked her last opponent, annoyed, not ready to admit the only reason she wanted her to shut up was because she had only killed twelve.

            Rona looked around, confused. "I thought there were sixty."

            Kennedy blushed crimson. "I, um, killed twenty..." 

            Rona started calculating. "Twenty. And I got nine..." She turned to the other girls.

            "Eighteen!" Vi jumped up, flushed from her fight.

            "Twelve."

            "That gives us…" She paused, working the numbers in her head. "Fifty-nine."

            Spike suddenly spun around, staking the vampire that was creeping up behind them. "Make that sixty." The girls looked at him, loosing their congratulations at the sight of his stake wound.

            "I think we need to go home," Dawn suggested, letting the weakened vampire lean on her.

            "Good idea." Kennedy beckoned to the other girls to head on back to the apartment. She paused at the funny look Spike was giving her. "What?"

            "Red," He said, hating the way her face paled. "That vampire said he drained Red." _Now whether he drained her physically or mentally is a whole other problem…_

            The girl nodded. Without a word, she walked faster towards their building. And their phone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            _*** She was standing over her, smiling. Her hair was the color of spun gold-her features soft and child-like. Gently brushing the hair away from her face. "You have to wake up now, dear."_

_            "Why?" Buffy pouted, sitting up in the small, warm space._

_            The girl smiled again. "You are not meant to be here yet. It isn't time."_

_            "Time?" She peered up into the bright face. She didn't understand. _

_            "You have to go back," she purred softly. "It wouldn't do any good now, after all we've done, would it?" _

_            Buffy squinted at her. "Do I know you?"_

_            She laughed. It was high and silvery. "Let's just say I'm a friend of an…acquaintance of yours." Coming closer, she laid a hand upon Buffy's shoulder. "But I won't always be there to save you." _

_            "Wait!" She reached out, clinging to her arm. It felt like she was leaving…she didn't want to leave… "I don't understand. Why are you here?"_

_            The girl backed away, the light surrounding her. "You will know. In time, you will know."***_

            "Thank goodness, you're awake." A man approached her bed. "I was beginning to think you'd sleep forever.

            Buffy blinked at the harsh hospital lights. "Faith…" She sat up abruptly. "Where's Faith?"

            "The girl you came in with? Down the hall."

            "Is she alright?"

            "Yes."

            "Where am I?" 

            The man grinned. "Benin City Hospital."

            Her eyes widened. "How'd I get down here?"

            He laughed. "You've been asleep for three days. You were at a local hospital in Kano, but they flew you here for better treatment."

            "Oh." She looked around the room.

            "That reminds me…" He reached over, taking a letter and a cell phone from the table. "Your cell phone has been going off the whole time. Not just one or two calls a day, we're talking constant. And this letter arrived for you." He slowly handed them to her. "If you feel up to it, you might want to tell your loved ones you're alright." 

            "Thank you," she said quickly as he left. _Holy crap_ she thought, looking at the messages. Then she looked to the envelope. _I know this handwriting…_With shaky hands, she opened it.

Dear Buffy- 

I don't know what to say. No words could really fit what I want to tell you. So before I go off on some poetic babble, I think I should be blunt. You know I love you. I think you've become quite used to it, actually. I've always dreamt of someday holding you, kissing you, having you. I've always wanted that more than anything. Hell, I gave up my life for you. And reclaimed it for the same reason. 

_Buffy, my heaven was hell without you there. Literally. Being without you and knowing I wouldn't be there to watch you live, it was unbearable. I couldn't exist without you. You're my life. I'm a stupid wanker who will probably never be able to admit that orally, but it doesn't make it any less true. You changed me. _

_I know you far better than you think I do. I know you're scared of getting hurt again. I know you don't like people knowing you're not Super Girl. I know you'll hide every negative thought in your pretty little head until you explode. I know you don't like having to live in the gray of what should be a very black and white world. I know you're sexy without meaning to be and you can't, for the life of you, figure out why. And I know that you don't want any one person to know it all-you don't want someone near you, for fear of them not loving what they see. And I know you hate to be scared. Wait-don't rip this into little shreds just yet. I have a point. I know you inside and out; every quirk, every fault. And I love you all the more for them. I love the little y's you put on the end of every other word and your hyper activeness. I love how everyday life confuses the hell out of you. I love how your lip trembles when you're scared and how it curls when you're upset. I love that cute, innocent little Buffy you keep hidden so well behind your tough Slayer shell. I love the fact that you would rather suffer than disappoint the people you love. I love your annoying sense of morality. And god knows I love the way you blush and look away when you're embarrassed. _

Well, this has turned into a bit of a sonnet. I could go on for hours, if you wanted. But why do it in the security of a letter when I could do it face to face in all its embarrassing glory? Come home soon, love. I'll be here. With candy hearts.

_                                                                                                                 Spike_

She refolded the letter in a daze. _He…He…_ She looked at the cell phone. She could call Xander. Or Giles. Or Willow or the girls in Cleveland.She dialed her own home.

            _BRRRING_

_            BRRRING_

"Hello?" 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Spike looked up as the phone rang. "You got that?"

            "Yes." Giles picked up the phone. "Hello?" He started choking. 

            "What?" He watched the Watcher intensely. 

            "Are you alright?" Giles said quickly. He looked over to the anxious vampire on the couch. "Buffy," he whispered.

            Dawn reached out to grab him as he sprang up. "Hold on." She pulled him back down, picking up the alcohol swab again. "I'm not done." Using one hand to hold him down, she dabbed at his chest.

            "Don't see why you're doing that," he grumbled while watching the phone. "What with my 'amazing healing abilities' and all." Actually, he was surprised at how slowly the wound was healing. Nearly four days after he was injured, it was still troubling him enough for his Nibblet to be looking after. 

            She tried to read his face as she taped a new patch of cotton to his skin. It was etched with worry and apprehension. "Spike?"

            _She really needs to get out of here more often,_ he thought as he looked at her. The girl had seen things no one should ever see, been through more apocalypses than she could count, and cleaned more vampire wounds than possible. He offered her a trademark smirk.

            "Spike." Giles stood, holding the phone out. 

            _Hi Buffy. Glad you're not dead. No. Buffy! Are you okay? Well, obviously…_He wracked his mind for something clever to say as he took the phone.

            "Spike?"

            "Buffy." The word came out more like a long, happy sigh than an actual name.

            "Hi." She sounded weak. 

            "Are you okay?" The question was out of his mouth before he could stop it.

            "I…I think so. I don't really know what happened." 

            "Two legs? Two arms? Twenty digits of various types?" He couldn't help himself. _Anything just for a laugh. Anything just for a smile…_

            Her giggle could be heard across the ocean. "Yup."

            "Good." He smiled to himself. "That's good."

            "I…um…" He could hear her soft breathing against the mouthpiece. "I got your letter." 

            He stayed silent. _If she really has something to say, I'm sure not going to interrupt her._ He noticed, with another smile, she had realized she had been breathing into the microphone. Even though she kept it away from her mouth, he could still hear the gentle rush of air escaping her lips as she waited for his response. "Oh." 

            She sighed softly. "I'm coming home." 

            "Oh?" He frowned. Was she really that badly hurt? "Sure you're alright, love?"

            Silence. 

            "Buffy."

            "…I won't be winning any beauty contests for awhile," she decided finally. _She's trying to soften the blow. She's hurt._

"Like you even need to try." Clearing his throat awkwardly, he forged on. "You'll both be back, then?"

            "For awhile." Another pause. "We need to figure out what to do with these things."

            "Like you should have in the first place." He let his anger towards her rash decision show for the first time.

            "Huh?"

            "Do you realize how easily you could have been killed?" The words tasted bitter on his tongue, but it was the way he felt. 

            She sighed again. "I…I just want to come home. We can talk about it later."

            "I'm not forgetting," He warned her.

            "I know." 

            He smirked, looking over at Dawn and her medical supplies. "We have a lot to talk about."

            There was a smile in her unusually quiet voice. "Really now? Don't tell me you all got into trouble when I was away."

            "You don't know the half of it." 

            "Great," She said sarcastically. "I'll call again with the flight information later."

            "Alright." He paused, suddenly very aware of the people in the room. "Love you," he murmured.

            She smiled again softly. _'In time, you will know…'_ "I'll be home soon." With an afterthought, she added, "With candy hearts." 

            Spike barley noticed as she hung up. He was too busy grinning like an idiot.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

See? I didn't kill him! Yay me! *stands up and does The Happy Dance*

Do you like where I'm going?

Are you curious about what's going to happen?

What do you think should happen?

Please, be merciful and _tell me!_


	12. Strong

AN: Well, this is quickly becoming very, very complicated. Sorry if I didn't really bridge the gap of those three/four days very well, hopefully this will explain everything. Also, I noticed I managed to muss up various Slayer names during my 'counting' incident…whoops. I've never been good at keeping people straight. Hey congratulate me: I made it through a week of little kids teaching a religion I don't practice! Unfortunately, tomorrow I go back into the dreaded van for another ten-hour ride of fun. Which means more handwritten story. Which means more hours of painful transcription. *shudder* Wish me luck!

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss.

Strong

            "Ow! Hey! Watch the drink cart!" Faith grumbled. She had her ankle-complete with brace-propped up on the arm of her seat. _How the hell did I manage to break my ankle anyway?_ The last thing she remembered was trying to stake the demon. Then she passed out, and woke up hours later in another, smaller airplane. With a broken ankle. And an incredibly sore back.

            Buffy, who had been gazing out the window at the ocean, turned to watch her. The girl was now attempting to open a bag of peanuts. _I swear, if that girl was ever forced to do one thing for too long…_ A wry smile crossed her face as bad thoughts crossed her mind. _No. Bad Buffy. Don't even think it._ Too late. The image was there. Faith, in the middle of the night, curled up next to Robin, trying to open a bag of peanuts. She giggled. 

            "What's so funny, B?" Giving up on the snack, the brunette crunched on the ice in her cup. The little Slayer just smiled, shrugging tiredly. _Since when has she ever been tired?_ Her eyes traveled over the girl's small frame. _Since when have her hands been covered in battle scars? Since when has she looked so thin? When did she…grow up? _ 

            Buffy tried to figure out exactly what she was looking at. She gave up fairly quickly, turning her attention back to the window. _The minute I know what's going through her mind is the minute Spike dies his hair black._ Another smile tugged at her lips with the change of topic. Her fingers gently brushed the letter she had concealed in her lap. Her mind softly reminded her of the words it contained. _'I'll be here. With candy hearts.' Just for a second, can I let down my guard? _She thought, hoping the waves beneath her held some sort of answer. _Just for a while, can I care?_ Shifting uncomfortably, she remembered the actual reason for returning home. In her phone call, she hadn't mentioned the fact both of her legs were in light casts, having been ripped to shreds by the demon and then operated on in hopes of repairing some of the damage. Or that she had gotten eight stitches in her cheek. Or the bizarre break the doctors had discovered in her hand. _Well, they'll know soon enough. We land in…_she looked down at her watch. _Three hours. _Actually, they weren't even landing in Nevada. They had a layover in Virginia. So really, it was more than three hours. _Yes. And that's all I need. A little more than three hours to figure out what I'm going to say to hi-… to them._ Supposedly, a lot had occurred in the time they had been away. Neither Giles nor Spike had so much as hinted what it was, though. And there was the whole I'm Sorry I Ran Off And Nearly Got Myself And Faith Killed speech to plan. Surprisingly, when on the phone it seemed Spike was actually more pissed off than Giles. _Is that possible? _She mused. Giles was like a father to her. He was…well; he was expected to stay up half the night, worried for her safety. It was his duty as a Watcher, and as her surrogate dad. But Spike? _I don't want him to worry about me._ And now, it was evident that he had. A lot. And when you're worried for so long, you tend to get a bit grumpy. There had been concern in his voice, yes, but something else, stronger, hidden. He was mad. 

_It's just because he loves you,_ a voice within her pointed out. _He was scared for you. He doesn't like being scared._

_Neither do I, _she silently argued, _but I'm okay. We're both okay._

_Not the point…_ it replied in a singsong tone. _He was scared because you took a risk like that. And you know it. _

_That's my job. I'm a Slayer. _

_And you've already died what, three times? Why not tack a fourth on there?_

_I'm careful. _

_Oh really? Admit it; Part of you wants it._ She shivered at the familiar words. _Part of you yearns for it._

_If I'm 'yearning' for anything, it sure as hell isn't death._ The thought popped so suddenly into her head she jumped. 

"Must have been some dream," Faith commented.

"Hmm? Oh, I wasn't sleeping." She muttered. "Just thinking."

"Well, I think I'm going to try and get some Z's in." Faith readjusted her chair, grabbing a pillow from the overhead storage. "Wake me when we land, k?"

"Sure…" Buffy bit her tongue. Felt the soft paper against her skin. The bag of candy settled deeper into her pocket. _Back to dreamland I go…_"When we land."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Is this too much?" Willow asked from behind her bouquet of balloons. She squeezed Kennedy's hand excitedly. 

            Xander shook his head. "Nah. I'm sure it's just what the girls expect; a little airport embarrassment."

            Spike snorted. Why the whole Scooby gang had to tag along to what he had hoped to be a very private reunion was above him. The girl beside him noticed his contempt, and smiled. "What?"

            A slight blush accompanied Dawn's smile. _Does she get that from her sis?_ "Nothing." She wrung her hands nervously. "Buffy's coming home."

            "Yeah." An awkward silence. _Go on you git, say something! _

"I think it's good," she said slowly. "I mean, with everyone back together." She managed a few seconds of eye contact before staring at the floor. It caused him to smirk.

            _"Flight 772 from Alexandria, Virginia to Las Vegas, Nevada has now arrived at gate 9. Flight 772, gate 9."_

            "Good lord." Giles stood to pace again. "They're here already?"

            "Already?" Robin looked up from his newspaper. "We've been here for over two hours, Rupert." 

            Ignoring the comment, he looked up as people began getting off the plane. People he didn't know.

            "Are you sure this is the right gate?" Dawn asked quietly as the stream of people passed them.

            Spike nodded, gesturing to the gigantic GATE 9 on the wall. _Calm down. Your heart hasn't beaten for over a hundred bloody years, it's not going to pop now. 'Sides, you've got to be strong for the Little Bit._

            Faith was the first to come off. On crutches. "Hey!" The group rushed up to her, barely giving her and Robin space to do the traditional I'm Glad You Didn't Die hug. 

            Spike didn't want to think about what had happened to Buffy when he saw how beat up she was. The way she flinched at everyone's hugs. Or even taking a deep breath. _Come on Buff, step out of that bloody plane so we can get this over with._ He shifted from foot to foot. _Step off that plane so I know you're alright._

Inside the plane, Buffy slid from her seat to the wheelchair the airline had provided her with. She was absolutely terrified. She couldn't go out there, to all those people, like this… _Damn it, I'm not going to cry just because I got a little hurt._ She looked back at her still legs. _Okay. Maybe a lot hurt._

            "Do you need any help, miss?" A stewardess strode down the aisle towards her. 

            "No thank you." With another deep breath, she offered the woman a smile. "Lead the way." Grabbing the wheels, she turned herself and began rolling towards the gate. _Come on, Buffy. Be strong. You have to be strong._

"Listen." Faith pulled back from the group. "We got more than a little beat up over there, so…" Her voice faded as everyone looked towards the gate. Turning her head, she found Buffy, in the wheelchair, coming towards them.

            "Hi," she whispered. Try as she might, she couldn't look any of them in the eye.

            Dawn smiled, pretending not to notice her sister's sudden immobility. "Buffy!" Leaning over, she hugged her. "I'm so glad you're back."

            "Me too." She managed to share a glance with her sister. All the while trying not to notice the one person who was looking at her with love instead of worry. 

            "How-how was your flight?" Willow asked as they all moved towards baggage claim. 

            "Fine." _Why won't any of you say anything? _She shrugged. "Long. But that generally comes with flying from Africa." Small, uncertain smiles fluttered among them. Fake masks that covered up the shock they still wore from seeing their Buffy, their strong Buffy, incapacitated. 

            "Why don't you all go and fetch the luggage." Spike suggested quietly, stepping up behind her. _Give the poor girl some air. Can't you see she's drowning?_ Reluctantly, they left the two of them. He sat down on a bench a few feet from her. Tried not to smirk as she wheeled herself closer. 

            "Hi," she murmured again sheepishly. A slow grin captured him. _Why is it you're always the only one? _

            "Hi." Reaching over uncertainly, he brushed his hand with hers. And was pleasantly greeted by a warm, inviting grasp. He edged closer. "You alright?"

            He wasn't wondering about her legs. He wasn't questioning the bandage on her face. He acted as if the cast encircling her hand didn't exist. He just wanted to know if she was alright. _Why is it only you who can see me?_ "I've been better," she answered truthfully. Her hand slipped away from his for a moment to dig the small pink box from her pocket and set it on her lap. 

            He smiled again as he noticed the candy. His box sat at home on the kitchen table, momentarily forgotten. A long, exhausted sigh escaped him. "Glad you're home, love." His fingers found hers once more. 

            Something was wrong. Something about the vampire in front of her was…off. She frowned slightly. 

            "Something wrong?" His eyebrows shot up at the oddly concerned look he was receiving. _What do you see, pet? _

"…Are _you_ okay?" Without realizing it, she had stretched her arm out further and now found herself placing her hand on his chest. And feeling the slightly bulky bandage beneath the shirt. Her eyes widened.

Quickly, he drew her hand away. "Never better," he reassured her. _Too bad she can see right through me._ He sighed again. "You missed a lot, love." "Apparently." She leaned back in her chair, still scrutinizing him. She let out a little yelp as a suitcase was plopped down in front of her.

"Sorry," Xander said quickly, bending over to look at her. "Did I hurt you?" The instant the words were out of his mouth, he regretted them. Her eyes glazed over in plain, uncontrollable anger as she started rolling towards the main doors. "Buffy!"

"Leave her be, you git." Spike grabbed the bag, glaring daggers. He took off after the petite blonde. What with a broken hand pushing one wheel, it didn't take him long to reach her. "Buffy."

She stared straight ahead. "I want to go home," she pouted. _Whoops. Forgot he likes it when I pout._ She drew her lip back in quickly.

"What a coincidence." He leaned over, sweeping her up into his arms before she could protest. "That's just where we're going." 

For a moment she was too upset to say anything. Her pride, after all, did not tolerate being carried around by Spike. It was humiliating. It was degrading. And if she let him do it now, he'd probably try it again. But there really wasn't much she could do about it at the moment…and he did smell good, after all. Still covered in leather and cigarette smoke and…_blood?_ She'd forgotten his chest. Again, she pressed her palm to the wound. His still chest seemed to jump at her touch._ Just for a while, can I care?_ Maybe this wasn't so bad. It wasn't like the car was parked very far off. And the evening breeze felt good against her face. Relaxing, she let her forehead rest against his shoulder. _Just for a little bit, can you be the strong one?_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            She slept the entire way home. Her friends kept saying things like 'oh, gotta love that jetlag', and 'she's probably just tired'. But he knew that, most likely, she was just trying to avoid them. The moment she'd gotten off that plane he could tell she hated having them there. Hated having them see her like that. Crippled. Weak. When she was the strongest one among them. _Poetic irony strikes again._

            He rode with Giles and the Nibblet home. Funny how crowded the living-or un-living-conditions had become. Rather than driving the fifty some miles daily, Xander had begun staying on Giles's couch. Robin also resided with him, for obvious reasons-to have him living under the same roof as the vampire was just stupid. When he had been away Willow had invaded what he had begun to think of as his room, and he hadn't had the heart to kick her out now that he was back. Plus Kennedy was in there now too, and he really didn't want to get on the bad side of a Slayer and a powerful Witch on the same day. He had taken the fold out couch quite happily, considering. 

            "Spike?" The quiet voice brought him abruptly from his daydream. 

            "I'm here, love." He gently brushed her hair back, feeling her warm skin against his hand. 

            "And where's here, exactly?" She squinted up at him. _Good lord, she is cute._

            "Back at your house. Your room." Spike noticed he might have just placed himself between a rock and a hard place. "I, um, was just waiting for you to wake up-" Her smile cut him off.

            "Okay," she whispered. She took her good hand and grabbed his shoulder, pulling herself up painfully. After a moment she patted the bed next to her. Smiled again as he took of his boots before sitting down on top of the covers next to her. "What happened when we were gone."

            He turned his head to look at her. She was just staring up at him with those big green eyes that made him feel like if he looked at them any longer he was going to melt into her-_well well, William the Bloody Awful Poet rears his ugly head again._ He cleared his throat. "Lots of bad things. Vampires. Kidnappings. Near-death experiences. Oh, another impending apocalypse." His eyes twinkled mischievously.

            She sighed. Slowly, she took his arm and draped it around herself. A small, private smirk appeared on her lips. _Why use a couch cushion when you've got the real thing?_  She dropped an arm around his waist, closing her eyes. _My Spike pillow._ "Can it wait till tomorrow?" She murmured.

            Another lump surfaced in his windpipe. He tilted his head so his face was buried in her golden tresses. "Course," he whispered gruffly into her ear. She hummed against him. He swore he could feel her smile into his chest. She was asleep a moment later. "It can wait." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'm too tired to think of a creative way to beg you for reviews.

But I'm too desperate to not do it.

J


	13. One Night's Rest

AN: I do believe I have the most horrible case of writer's block ever. I blame…uh…FX? (dang them and not broadcasting Buffy on the weekends…). Sorry this one took so long to get out, I wasn't able to handwrite it like I had hoped. Getting on the road before six AM will do that to a person. I ended up sleeping through most of it…anyway; this chapter _should_ explain a few events that took place. And create some more confusing ones. *evil grin* Enjoy!

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss.

One Night's Rest

            The first thing he noticed as he opened his eyes was the picture of Dawn and Buffy on the nightstand inches from his face._ 'ello girls…_He rubbed his sleep filled eyes, a smirk beginning to form on his lips. The second was the fact that he was in her bed, alone. Spike sat up abruptly. _No! Not after all this time, not after all of that…_ He scanned the room desperately. She wasn't there. _Don't tell me after all we've been through, you've left me alone again._

            "Hey," she said quietly as she rolled in through the partially closed door. To her delight, he was awake. _Finally. _She paused as she noticed the odd look he wore. "Everything okay?" Carefully, she moved up beside the bed.

            "…Peachy." He muttered, suddenly deciding the floral print of her comforter was horribly interesting. 

            Buffy sighed. Reaching over, she cupped his chin in her palm. Tried not to notice the way he was clenching his jaw. "Spike. What is it." 

            Defenseless under her touch, it was all he could do not to lean over and shower her in kisses. "Nothing." Quieter, he added, "Thought you'd gone…" 

            If any bit of her had any inhibitions towards the man in front of her, they officially disappeared as she witnessed the doubt in his blue eyes. She pulled him closer. "Not gone." Enjoying the way he shivered even when he couldn't feel the cold, she let her other hand come up to trace those impossibly perfect cheekbones. "Not going."

            His eyes widened in disbelief. A soft chuckle escaped him. Trying to control the purr she was creating in him, stroking him like that, he gazed deep into her eyes. "Alright." _Hmm. That came out much huskier than intended._ "Alright," he tried again. Her giggling certainly didn't help him any. _What the hell am I supposed to say?_

            Watching his mouth silently open and shut was certainly amusing to the blonde as she shifted in her chair. He noticed apparently and lifted her out into his lap. _I knew he'd keep doing that…_ Oh well. For some reason it didn't particularly bother her. Absent-mindedly, her fingers wandered down to his chest. And to the bandage on it. She frowned as she tugged at his shirt to look at the wound. "What happened." Cutting him off, she let her fingers work the tender skin around the medical tape. "And don't give me any macho excuse you've got prepared. What. Happened."

            Spike smirked. _I do believe you know me too well, love._ Sighing, he tenderly peeled away the dressing. And frowned down at the scar on his chest. _What the…?_ Four days of oozing and scabbing, all healed up in one night's rest? "Got staked." He tried to read her ever-turbulent eyes. "What?" 

            She let the information sink in slowly. "St-Staked?" _Did I hear him right? _She shook her head incredulously. "You got _staked_?"  

            Silently, he nodded.

            "But…" A confused frown finally surfaced on her features. "Stake." She gently put a finger in the center of the scar. "Heart." Her finger traveled up to catch him under the chin. "Vampire." 

            The smirk turned into an all-out smile. "Indeed. Has had me-and all the Scoobies, for that matter-puzzled as well."

            "What exactly happened when I was gone?" she asked suspiciously. He moved her from his lap to the bed so she could watch him explain.

            "Right." He cleared his throat. "Well, it all started out in Cleveland…"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            She had been eerily quiet ever since the end of his story. Which had been about ten minutes ago. "Love?" He reached over to touch her arm. No response. "Buffy?"

            "Hmm?" Jumping at the cold hand against her skin, her eyes finally settled on the concerned face before her. "So let me get this straight… you beat up a vampire, got really, really drunk, spied on some other vampires, found out they were planning on capturing my sister, bumped into a warlock vampire who had teleported himself and Dawn, and then let him stake you." 

            "That's about right." He nodded. " 'cept you left out the bit where Red participated in a magical smack down." Hmm. It didn't seem like his jokes were lightening the mood at all. Considering that the little scowl that had been tugging at her mouth all morning only deepened at his quip. "You alright there?"

            She shook her head. "Of course." Busying herself by unwrapping the gauze around her legs, she asked nervously. "Why-I mean, um, why did you let them…"

            "Stake me?" He finished for her. "They were going to hurt Dawn." Insert defensive shrug here. "No time to pull her out of the way, only thing I could do was jump in front of her." At this point, he took her hands away from their present task so he would be sure to have all of her attention. "I told you, love. I swore I would protect her. And I did." There. That seemed like a good answer. The best, as a matter of fact. _So why is she looking at me so sadly?_

            She forced herself to smile. A hard, fake, plastic smile she knew he would see right through. "Thank you," she managed. Again, he would probably see right through her. She could tell even without looking at him. The way his fingers softly caressed her own was warning enough. "Just…" _This is stupid, Buffy. Why even mention to him that you don't want to loose him? Why tell him you were scared? _Hesitantly, she looked up into his eyes. And suddenly, she knew why. "I don't want to loose you again," she blurted out. 

            Spike smiled. Before she could explain or apologize or even blush, he pressed his lips softly to hers. Surprise rocked her body as he pulled away. Pushing down the ever-rising lump in his throat, he swung himself around to sit cross-legged in front of her. "Don't want to loose you either," he murmured. A hushed moment quickly ensued. _What did you expect, really? Did you think she was going to tell you she loved you? Did you think she'd forget all of those times she's been hurt? Did you think she was just going to drop all of her old habits and fling herself into your arms? Did you think-_his mental rant was cut short by her gentle kiss. 

            Why she chose that particular moment to kiss him, she had no idea. All she knew was that suddenly their mouths were together again, and she had been the one to provoke it. Tenderly, she let her lips caress his. After the initial shock, he cautiously let his tongue brush against hers. Just a moment, no more, but it left her far less composed than she would have liked. Her response was not nearly as cautious. 

            How long they sat there, kissing like that, was unknown to him. Could have been an hour. Could have quite possibly been a minute. Hell, it could have been fifteen seconds. But it would have been fifteen seconds of pure and total bliss. When they finally separated, they were both gasping for breath. No matter that one of them didn't even need it. 

            With a content sigh, she let herself slump back against the headboard. Neither one of them moved for what seemed like an eternity. Remembering her original task, she went back to unwrapping her legs. And trying not to notice the intensity with which he was watching her do so. Endless minutes passed as she removed layer after layer, bandage after bandage. She stopped as she neared the last layer. _They said it wasn't pretty. They said I should give it time to heal. _Her eyes went back to him. As if he could read her mind, he turned his gaze elsewhere. Slowly, she peeled off the wrappings. Looked down at her damaged legs. And let out a surprised squeak at the red scars that lay in front of her. _What the…?_ She had watched them change her dressings before coming back to the states. They had been gross; all pussy and swollen and disfigured…_all healed, in one night's rest?_ Damn. The role of fresh gauze was on the dresser. And out of her reach. "Could you pass me that gauze, please…" 

            Standing automatically, he retrieved the bandaging in question and returned to her. With a hesitant glance he began rolling it around her ankle. Funny; she seemed to be healing remarkably fast. Even with her Slayer abilities. " 's not that bad, love," he reassured her. Slowly, he began to travel up her leg. Always watching her reaction to him. Always aware of whether or not she wanted him there with her. "Buffy…" A small smile surfaced momentarily as he caused her to shiver with his cold hands. "How did this happen?" 

            Buffy shrugged. "The demon. The Betugk demon. We hit one with the Jeep…" her voice began to trail off. "It broke through the bottom. Scratched me." She giggled shyly. "Okay. It more than scratched me."

            "How did you get away?" He was up to her knee now. Without even realizing, he ran his fingers slowly over the back of the joint. 

            Trying desperately to ignore his touch, she shrugged again. "Don't know. It stabbed me-" she lifted the edge of her shirt to reveal another bandage. "-and then I passed out. I woke up again in the hospital, days later."

            "And Faith?" He finished with the left leg and moved on to the right. Teasingly, he ran a fingernail along the bottom of her foot. 

            She let out a soft yelp. "Hey!" Once he had stopped tickling her, and she had given him the appropriate glares, she shrugged for the third time. "Again, I don't know. She said that she passed out too, and woke up on the plane. She wasn't out as long as I was."

            "So neither one of you know who saved you," he clarified.

            A memory suddenly came back to her. "Wait!  I…I think I had a dream or something." Ignoring the confused look, she bit her lip. "At least I think I did. It was…I don't know how to describe it."

            Spike sighed. "What was it?" He let his fingers brush out imaginary wrinkles in the fine fabric as he stretched it over her small leg. 

            "I was in this…place. A white room, I think." She frowned in concentration. "There was this girl. I don't know who she was. She said something…how she couldn't always save me…"

            His eyes widened. _Girl?_ "A girl. Do you…do you remember what she looked like?"

            She shook her head. "Not really. Long blond hair, maybe. She almost…glowed." More of the dream was coming back to her now. "And she said she knew someone I knew."

            If it were necessary for him to breathe, he would have stopped at that last phrase. "Someone you knew." Pretending to mull it over in his head, he tucked the last bit of gauze around her. 

            "I could have just been hallucinating, though," she added quickly. _And he doesn't need to know about his cameo appearances now, does he? _

            "Of course." Nodding far more than was necessary he stood again. The first aid kit was still sitting open, so he helped himself to a fresh cotton pad and medical tape. All underneath the intense scrutiny of her gaze. "Just going to clean up your other…" he tried to explain.

            Silently she pulled her shirt up more. He sat down in front of her again, gently removing the old bandages. Only to expose a fresh, tender looking scar. _Odd…_Forgetting it quickly, she watched him go about his work. Always being careful not to hurt her. As he finished, she let her good hand catch his. "Thanks." _For taking care of me, for staying with me, for sending me letters and saying that you love me…_she silently added. 

            "Anytime, love." Repositioning himself, he took a deep, if unnecessary, breath. _No more waiting,_ he thought. After all, he'd said it more than once already. _What's the harm in stating the obvious one more time? _He was about to declare his undying love yet again. He was set to stay right there across from her until she said those three little words he so badly needed to hear. He'd wait all bloody day, if need be. He was prepared for any rejection that might come his way. Any little doubt or fear. What he wasn't prepared for was another soft kiss; lay upon him so delicately it nearly destroyed him. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Buffy!"

            "You're awake!"

            "Are you alright?" 

            She blushed fiercely as he carried her down the stairs. After hearing his horror stories of having to drag the chair up them once, she figured it might be easier just to let him do what he probably would have done anyway. Still, it wasn't exactly pleasant to come down to a full house.

            Dawn quickly scooted over, leaving a spot for two on the couch. "How ya doing, Buff?"

            Settling in amongst the cushions, she smiled. "Been better." Leaving it at that, she looked around to all her friends. "What's with the gathering?"

            Xander looked up at her. He tried to ignore the arm that was still draped around his best friend. "We were just talking about those demons. Didn't figure you'd be up yet…" He gestured towards the anxious looking redhead beside him. "And Willow found out more about the prophecy!" 

            She turned her head towards her friend. "Willow?"

            "Um, well, I did... sort of…" Willow walked quickly towards the table where her notebook sat. "I was able to figure out more of the translation, and more about the book. It's set in chapters, I think. What I have translated is most of chapter one. I think." In a quieter tone, she began to read. " '_Into each time before one was sent to save the world. One to balance the forces of light and of dark. Among them, there will be one unlike the rest. The One. She is the way to maintaining the balance for which they have fought.'" _

"Believe we've heard this bit, Red," Spike interrupted. 

            "I know." She glared at him. "Just, let me finish, okay? There are… changes. '_She will be beyond goodness or evil. To save her, the champion of heart will rise. Dark will lighten and the world will be anew as it never was.'"_

Buffy looked over silently to the man sitting next to her. _The world will be anew as it never was._

_" 'He will give himself to save them all. There will be a great battle, in which he will perish. The forces of evil will bide their time under the Earth, waiting for the time when they might rise again. The One and her army will be spread far and wide. They will face their own evils as they would-alone. Only together can the balance be achieved.'_ Okay. Here's the new part." Making sure she had everyone's attention, she continued._ " 'Alone will they go towards small victories. Alone shall they die. Without completion, each shall spiral down into the fiery pits as evil grows impatient and shows itself. Risen again, he will fight for one dear.'"_

Spike looked over silently to the two women beside him. _Risen again he will fight for one dear, eh?_

_" 'The armies of the dark will keep hidden the answer, keep hidden the key to their being. They shall rise up in their numbers and be spread to keep apart the forces. As long as they remain unbalanced, so shall the armies succeed in their quests. Dark is held as long as light remains; without her it devours. And the world will become hell. She will fight, but she will fall. Without heart, she will fall.'"_ Finishing, Willow looked around the confused room. "I don't really know what the new part means. It keeps mentioning balance and togetherness, but it never says of what." 

"Prophesies can be that way," Giles sighed. "Very useful once you figure out what the hell they actually mean."

The rest of the group, stunned by the British-man's harsh language, stayed quiet for some time. Finally, Spike piped up. "Red. Is there anything else?"

"No." She shook her head. "I mean, yeah, there's more, but I haven't figured it out yet. The languages keep changing; evolving within the text almost. It's pretty hard to follow." 

"But it's basically a book about B, right?" Faith, silent until now, pointed out.  

Willow frowned. "I don't know. It does have a lot to do with Buffy. But that's just the first chapter. Besides-" She glanced back to her notebook again. "-I think there's a mention of Spike in here too."

Buffy tried hard to ignore to poignant stare the brunette was sending her way. "Is there anything else?"

Giles shrugged. "Well, no. We still don't know how to kill these demons, and there's really no way of narrowing down what 'a one tool crafted before the time of steel' actually is. I think we are, how would you say, stuck in-between a rock and a hard place?" 

She sighed. "Guess so. But hey-at least we only have that to deal with now. I mean, the Cleveland job's done, so…" Noticing the way everyone was avoiding looking at her, she frowned. "That's not the reason you're all over here, is it," she muttered quietly.

"We just wanted to make sure you're alright," Xander offered.

She stiffened. "I am fine. Really. Sure, I got a little more beat up than I usually do but-" unconsciously, she took Spike's hand. "-I don't I am the only one who came out of this experience undamaged." She let her eyes rest meaningfully on Faith's ankle. Kennedy's bandaged arm. The lump on Giles's head. Spike's chest. Willow. "Why don't you all go home." It came out much softer than she intended. And she couldn't help feeling guilty as Xander, Giles, Faith and Robin all came up to her in turn to bid their farewells. It wasn't her fault if they were being overprotective, was it? 

_They love you. They're just worried about you. _  

_Then why does it feel like they're smothering me?_

"Buffy?" Dawn stood from the couch. "Me and Willow and Kennedy are going to go get some groceries for lunch, okay?"

She looked up at her. _Since when has she looked so grown up? _"Um. Yeah. Sure. Be home before-" The door closed behind the girls. "-Noon." She could hear a low chuckle coming from her side. "It's not funny," she pouted.

His chuckle grew. "Not why I'm laughing, love." With a glint in his eyes he pulled a box of candy from his pocket. Never tearing his eyes from hers, he opened it and poured several candy hearts out onto the coffee table. Picking one at random he lifted it to her lips, murmuring, "Wonder what that could say." 

Her eyes jumped to the table. All of the hearts said the same thing: I LOVE YOU. She swallowed hard. _Oh come on. It's not like it isn't true. You know it. He knows it. Hell, you've already said it. Sort of. In a strictly no-talking sort of way. What's the big deal in saying it, really? _She opened her mouth and he popped the sweet in. Without thinking she took one from the glass surface as well, lifting it with her 'broken' hand so it hung teasingly in front of his face. He watched her, bemused. His expression changed to one of surprise as she slid it between his lips. _What's the big deal in saying it, really?_

"I…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ooh, aren't I just the evilest author ever?

Don't you just want to send me a review to tell me how much my cliffhangers annoy you? 

Don't you just want to send me a review? 

Come on, I'll write you spuffy fluff till my brain explodes…

:) 


	14. Three Soft Words

AN: Ok, which one of you stole my muse??? This is the worst case of writer's block I've ever experienced…and it hurts. Didn't you just love that last chapter? *snicker snicker* I promise to be much nicer this chapter…honestly…I have decided that, as I have become mildly obsessed with my plot line, there will be a third installment of this story. Yay me! And while I remember, an answer to certain people's queries *cough _the c.c._ cough* is that the prophecy is my own little creation. Made from my own little bored mind. So yeah. Hope you like this next chapter!

Disclaimer: All characters belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss.

Three Soft Words

            "Potatoes…check…tomatoes…check…garlic…check…"

            "Garlic. Ew." Dawn wrinkled her nose as she peered into the grocery cart.

            Willow threw the girl an amused look. "Soup, silly. You like soup." Silently, she bagged a few onions.

            "I like soup too," Kennedy chimed in with a small smile. Both girls grinned back at her. 

            "So…" Dawn tried to renew the conversation as they paid for their items. "How about Buffy and Spike, back at the house?"

            Willow turned to look at her suspiciously. "What about Buffy and Spike, back at the house?"

            She shrugged. "I don't know…I guess they seemed sort of…"

            "Snuggly?" Kennedy offered. She winced at the mild glare the red head gave her. 

            "That's good, right?" Dawn asked quietly, grabbing a bag and heading for the doors. "I mean… it's good that they have each other." 

            "We don't know anything," Willow warned. After mulling it over in her head for a long, drawn out while, she decided, "Buffy missed him. It's just…natural."

            Kennedy's eyebrow went up. "Natural. Uh-huh."

            "There's nothing there," she insisted again. Mostly to herself. "Besides, if there was you know she would tell us."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            The gleam of the headlights streaming in through the window reminded her she was not the only person residing in the house anymore. Groaning, she rolled herself from the semi-upright position useful in watching old sappy movies so that she was lying on her back, her head still resting in his lap. _Dang headlights. Dang car._

"My guess is the Scooby girls are back," he said quietly. _Just in case you don't want them to find us quite so…_Letting his thoughts trail off, he brushed his fingers through her hair again. 

            "Don't care." She pouted. Her Spike pillow was too comfy to give up just because her sister and friends were back. She let her fingers trace patterns on his leg at random. 

            A smile tugged at his lips. It still shocked him when she did things like that. Touched him. Said those little things. _And even after she said…_It was hard to believe he wasn't going to wake up alone in his crypt, victim of a very detailed, very cruel dream. He still remembered too well the times when she did care. The times when she'd tried to hide…whatever they'd had…from everyone. But no more. _Now…_Whistfully, he looked back down at her. His Slayer. His Goddess. His girl. _The Scoobies will just have to deal_. His smile widened at the thought of Giles catching the two in a passionate embrace. "Love…" Taking her small face in his hand, he turned her to look at him. "Say it again." 

            She rolled her eyes. "Is that all you ever want to hear?"

            "Yes."

            Slowly, she reached up and wound her arms around his neck. Bringing him closer she murmured three soft words into his ear. To her delight, he smiled again. No idiotic grin or trademark smirk. She knew from watching him that, more often than not, they were a defensive gesture. But a smile…she pulled him back down again, whispering until she thought he would burst. 

            After a long moment, Spike sat up again. His eyes twinkled mischievously just as the door opened.  

            "Hi we're-" Dawn nearly tripped as she came in laden in grocery bags. Never mind that her eyes were now bugging out of her head. "-Home…" Blushing fiercely, she rushed through to the kitchen. 

            Willow and Kennedy soon followed, again having the odd tendency to redden and look away. "Um, hi guys." Willow waved uncertainly.

            " 'lo Red." Moving purposefully slower than he had to, Spike lifted Buffy from his lap and stood. Only to be jerked down again by a possessive hand. He offered her a rueful smirk before turning his attention back to his Slayer. 

            She wound her fingers around his, finally sliding her gaze from the endless blue depths of his eyes to her very uncomfortable friend. "You got groceries?"

            It was all Willow could do to nod. "Um. Yeah. We got some, uh, groceries. For lunch. Say-" she gestured desperately to her friend "-Why don't you come help me with that?"

            Her eyebrow crept up suspiciously. "Mm hmm." Carefully untangling herself from the pile of arms and legs on the couch she slid into the chair she silently suspected she didn't even need, and followed the small troop of girls into the kitchen. They had barely gotten around the corner when she was attacked.

            "What's going on?"

            "Are you and Spike…?"

            "Do you love him?" This last question posed quietly, if not randomly, by a very earnest looking teen made all of the others turn to look at her. 

            "Nothing. Yes. And…" Buffy tilted her head slightly to watch the reaction of her friends. "…yes." She cleared her throat. "But I think we already knew that."

            They watched her in stunned silence until Dawn finally stepped forward. With a tentative smile, she hugged her older sister. "Congratulations."

            Quickly remembering their manners the two other girls followed suit, giving her hugs and the appropriate congrats. They didn't even notice the blonde figure smirking in the corner until he cleared his throat.

            "And what could have happened in such a short time to have earned a congratulations?" He questioned innocently, staying in the shadows to avoid the light that would surely give away his suddenly moist eyes. The last thing he could have expected was the youngest Summers girl letting out a noise he could only describe as a squeak and capturing him in a death-grip embrace. Rolling his eyes he attempted to squirm out of the touching moment. "Hey Bit, Big Bad here. Not one for the hugging." 

            Letting out a giggle she squeezed him tighter. "And what are you going to do about it, huh?"

            Pulling away, he tried to regain his dignity by straightening his duster. "Don't make me tickle you," he threatened teasingly. Then, he noticed the weird looks he was getting from the Slayer and the Witch. "What?"

            Willow started as she realized she had been staring. "Oh. Sorry. Nothing. Just, you know, spacey." Letting out a nervous laugh she twirled a finger by her ear. Kennedy simply blushed and looked away.

            He raised an eyebrow questioningly as he went to the refrigerator and grabbed a blood bag. Quickly, he emptied its contents into a mug and stuck it in the microwave. All the while trying to ignore the four pairs of eyes bearing into his back. After taking a sip of his beverage he made a face. _Must have gotten a spoiled bag or something._ Thinking nothing of it, he poured the fouled blood down the drain and turned back to the suddenly tense conversation.

            "So…"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            _*** She stood off in the distance, always smiling down upon him. Even in this world of white she seemed to glow. Sighing, he approached her. "What? Come to invade my dreams too?"_

_            "Hello William."_

_            "Don't you 'hello William' me! I know what you did!" Angrily, he poked a finger at her. "You saved Buffy, didn't you?"_

_            She frowned. "Didn't you want me to save her?"_

_            "Of course, but…" He shrugged confusedly. "I thought you didn't want her to know about you."_

_            She smiled. "Not about me. About you."_

_            "Whatever."   _

_            "William, you are running out of time." Her face turned serious as she gazed out into the gleaming world of white. If anything, she seemed concerned. "You remember our deal."_

_            "That I have to go back to Heaven if I can't prove she needs me. I know." He ran his fingers through his hair. He knew all to well. It was all he could think about when she smiled at him, when she had whispered those three soft words into his ear just hours ago. And it killed him to think that just when things were going so well, he might have to leave her yet again. "How much time do I have left?"_

_            She smiled. "You have time. If what you said is true." Softer, she murmured, "If you were destined for her."***_

            He woke as he felt warm skin rub against his own. Rubbing his eyes, he turned to see who had snuck under the covers of his pullout bed. 

            "Couldn't sleep," Buffy whispered apologetically as she spooned behind him, cautious fingers running over his back. Laying a gentle kiss against his shoulder she closed her eyes.  

            He smiled; listening patiently as her breathing slowed and she fell asleep. _Love you, pet. _Her heart, beating so closely to his own with the gentle thump thumping he loved, lulled him back to his dreams. 

            _*** "See? She loves me. She bloody said it!" He shook his fist angrily at the amused girl. "What else do you want?"_

_            "We know she loves you," she said slowly. "We knew that before. It doesn't prove anything. She needs to say-"_

_            "She needs me." He muttered various curses under his breath. "Bloody hell! Can't you see she does? Can't you see she can't go a sodding night without me?" He gestured wildly towards the empty space, trying to express with his hands what he couldn't with words. What was in his heart. Slowly, he turned back to face the quiet entity before him. "I know she needs me," he whispered._

            She looked at him with a combination of pity and worry. "That isn't enough. She has to say it. And soon." With a wave, she began walking away from him. And before he could say anything else to her, she was gone. Faded away into that annoyingly bright world of white.

            _He spun around, suddenly back in his own crypt. The first thing he saw was Buffy sitting on the bier. "Buffy?"_

_            She smiled, not looking at him but instead staring blankly off into space. "You are, you know."_

_            Frowning, he came closer. "I am what."_

_            "A champion." Her head jerked as she turned her gaze to his approaching form. "My champion."_

_            The possessive way in which she spoke caused him to smirk. "All yours, love." Standing in front of her, he brushed a stray tendril of hair from her face. _

_            "My champion." She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. "My heart," she whispered into his ear._

_            Spike let himself drown in her intoxicating scent for a long while before responding. "I don't understand." _

_            Again a smile graced her lips. "You are my heart. I am your soul. And together we are one." _

_            "I don't understand, Buffy." Wrapping his arms around her waist he buried his face in her hair. She was saying things that didn't make sense to him. She had a heart, this he knew; it was alive and beating this very minute. And he had a soul…didn't he? _

_            "You will know." She placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. "In time, you will know." As quickly as she appeared she vanished, leaving him alone once again. ***_

            A strangled cry late in the night woke them both. "Dawn," she gasped, jumping out of the bed and racing up the stairs. Pushing the younger girl's door open she rushed in. "Are you okay?"

            Dawn sat up in her bed, shaking. "Had a dream," she managed. 

            "A bad dream?" Buffy asked. She sat down next to her, wrapping a comforting arm around her shoulders. The teen nodded, brushing at the tears streaming down her cheeks. "Do you want to tell me about it?"

            She sighed. "It was…hot. We were out in, in the desert I think. There were these…things." A shiver ran through her. "They attacked us, they just kept coming, and I tried to make them leave…"

            "Shhh." Tenderly she pulled her sister closer to herself. She ran her hand down the teens long locks. "It's okay. It was just a dream. A stupid, bad dream that was probably inspired by a horror movie of some sort."

            Dawn smiled. "Our whole lives are horror movies," she pointed out. Frowning, she sat up straighter. "Hey. You can walk."

            "Yeah, guess I can." She shared a baffled look with her for a moment. _Makes sense…my legs got better pretty fast, once I came home._ "Guess Spike doesn't have to wrestle with that wheelchair anymore."

            A giggle escaped her. "You should have seen him with that thing. It was hilarious." Her voice took on a softer, if not more hesitant, tone. "In case you can't tell, I'm really happy about you two."

            Buffy grinned. "Good. Though I can't say I could do much if you weren't."

            "He loves you more than you know," she confided. "Sometimes, when he thinks no one's watching, he just looks at you as if nothing else exists. It's almost like…you're all he knows."

            A pleasant, familiar warmth overtook her face. After opening and shutting her mouth several times, and not being able to say anything, she gave up. Instead, she fingered Dawn's hair again. "You're sure you're okay?"

            She nodded. "Perfectly fine. Nothing a cup of cocoa won't fix." With a smile, she slid out of bed. "Are you coming?"

            "Right behind you," she said. The two sisters tiptoed down the stairs, afraid of waking the other inhabitants of the house. As they went around the corner the odd sight of a vampire preparing three mugs of hot chocolate confronted them.

            Shrugging embarrassedly, Spike muttered, "Thought you might like some chocolate." As if that explained everything, he handed Dawn a mug and took the other two to the table where Buffy was watching amusedly. Stopping suddenly, he cocked his head. "Hey. You're walking."

            "Yes indeed." With a raised eyebrow she helped herself to a cup of the warm drink. Sipping slowly, she hummed in contentment. "Mm. Yummy."

            He grinned. "You alright Nibblet?" He asked over the rim of his own mug. 

            She smiled a little at him. "Fine. Just a bad dream." Absent-mindedly she stirred the marshmallows around, her smile broadening as she thought of Spike remembering how she liked her cocoa. 

            He nodded silently, peering into his own as if it might hold all the answers to life's little mysteries. How ironic it would be if he could solve every problem that came along with hot chocolate. He looked back up at the Summers girl who had turned him into this cocoa-loving, wheelchair-wrestling being. Blonde haired, green eyed, and filled with more lovable quirks than one would think possible. His entire world, wrapped up in one tiny package. His family, friend and love, nowwatching him curiously through those damn green eyes and trying to figure out what he could be thinking. _You have no idea, pet._ He smirked devilishly and took another long swig. _You have no idea._

            "Well, I think I'll be heading back to bed." Dawn stood and tried to pull off a realistic looking fake yawn. "Night," she murmured, walking up the stairs slowly so she could hear the conversation she knew would ensue once she was gone.

            Silently Buffy took her now empty mug and Dawn's to the sink. She didn't notice the bleached figure behind her until he pressed himself up against her in all the right places. She shivered happily as his fingers trailed up her bare arm. 

            Kissing her neck lightly, he let his nose brush her ear. His arms wrapped around her waist, increasing their contact. " 'm going back to bed too," he murmured softly, the words tickling her delicate skin. Unwrapping himself he took a few steps back towards the living room before turning. "Coming?"

            With a smile she followed him back towards the pullout bed. Going upstairs to her own room would be nice, of course, but she knew Dawn wouldn't be asleep yet and liked to cling to the hope Dawn didn't know about her sleeping with Spike. Soon she was nestled against his chest, little purrs of contentment escaping her lips. 

            "Buffy?"

            "Hmm."

            Pulling away so he could see her eyes, he asked, "What happened in Africa? I mean, to make you…"

            She sighed. In truth, she really couldn't explain why she suddenly was ready to admit-no, to announce-that she was in love with him. _Maybe my cookies are done,_ she thought with a little smirk. No. It wasn't that. It wasn't her. It was him. He had always been there for her, always; and when he had left, she had blamed her sudden love on missing him. Missing his consistent presence, missing the way he had loved her no matter what. But when he had come back…she had been scared. She didn't want to be with him because she was still as in love with him as she had been when she thought he was dead. And it is so easy to love someone when they are not there. There was no fear of rejection; no possibility things wouldn't turn out exactly as she had dreamed them. But it wasn't real. This-those pools of blue she was currently drowning in-this was real. This was what she had been waiting for. It had just taken nearly getting them both killed again for her to realize it. Pressing her lips to his quickly, she whispered, "You." 

            He smiled, kissing her back. Temporarily, all thoughts of needing and heaven and time left him as he lost himself in her kiss. All he needed to be happy the rest of forever was the memory of this. After a long, sweet moment, they returned to their prior cuddling. "Buffy?"

            "Hmm?"

            "You love me?"

            She opened her eyes. He looked so sincere, his flat tone of voice only further revealing how desperate he really was for the answer. "Yup," She said, murmuring three soft words against his skin. 

            "I love you." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

See? Told you I'd be nice. Alright. Confused much? I brought up a bit of plotline I really haven't touched much since After The End, so if you are lost go back and read it. :) Also, as I was writing (slowly, dang kidnapped muse…) I thought _hmm, that might be a good idea for a send out chapter…_ So, if I get enough interest, I might write a tiny ficlet about wheelchair wrestling (possibly to be entitled Captain Peroxide and the Evil Wheelchair). It would have nothing to do with the story, but if you think I should bother please let me know. If I do, there will be mention in future author's notes. 

I usually don't write so much at the end of chapters. It's exhausting. 

Don't you think I deserve reviews for all my hard work?

(Oh, and if you are the evil kidnapper of my muse please return it! Any ransom you want, just please _don't hurt my baby!_)

:)


	15. Blue Eyes

AN: Sorry this took so long to get out…I want my muse back! Gah! Although I am very happy about purchasing a Buffy magazine…doing so caused me to miss the beginning of Seeing Red! Particularly ironic (James spent about two paragraphs talking about how scared he was about filming it), don't you think? Can you tell I'm in a very, er, excitable mood? And to top it off, I have six chapters left and I don't think I'm going to have time to get everything where I want it for the beginning of story #3. But guess what? Captain Peroxide vs. The Evil Wheelchair now exists. Man, that was fun to write! Please indicate in a review if you want it (along with your email, please. Very time consuming to go through thirty some author codes hunting down addresses). I find it very amusing. Anyhoo, on with the show! 

Disclaimer: All characters belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss. All food products belong to Kelloggs. :)

Blue Eyes

KNOCK KNOCK 

"Bloody hell."

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK 

"Coming…"

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK 

"We're coming!" Kicking back the sheets angrily, Spike jumped from the bed and stomped over to the door. 

"Hey there blondie." Faith grinned, stepping around the shirtless vampire and into the house.

He glared at her. "What are you doing here at-" he checked the clock "-six thirty in the morning?" 

"Need to talk to B." She gazed up the staircase, silently musing whether or not to storm into the girl's bedroom. "She here?"

Spike looked over to the pile of sheets that was currently twitching, a smirk overtaking him. Did she even realize how adorable she was when she did things like that? Good lord. Did she even realize she had caused him to use the word adorable? Even so, she might not want to be found by Faith in such a…compromising position. Hmm. What to do. Lucky for him, someone else solved his inner dilemma.

"What do you want," Buffy mumbled sleepily as she stuck her head out from under the covers. She barely noticed the look of surprise on the other Slayer's face as she stood up, stretching her cramped muscles. Even sleeping curled up with Spike didn't make up for the fact that that was a really old, really uncomfortable pullout. It was a wonder he hadn't been complaining about it. Well, she'd just have to make sure he didn't stay on it anymore. She smiled at that thought. 

"Uh…" For some reason the sight of the blonde in front of her, not ashamed in the least in being caught in her boyfriend's bed, threw Faith. Ironic, considering all she'd seen. And all she'd been seen doing. She blushed uncharacteristically for a moment before finding her words. "I think I had a Slayer dream."

Buffy's eyebrows shot up. "You think you had a Slayer dream?"

She nodded. "Yeah." With that, she walked into the kitchen. "Say, what do you guys have in the order of breakfast foods? I think the only thing our British friend eats is biscuits and tea." She threw a sidelong glance at the bewildered vampire. "Our older British friend, of course." 

"Whoa whoa whoa." Buffy grabbed the box of cereal for her hands. "Slayer dream now. Frosted Flakes later."

Faith glared at her. "Hey, how's a girl supposed to talk on an empty stomach?"

"You're trying to blackmail us into feeding you for info on an impending apocalypse?" Spike let out a chuckle. "Even I wouldn't sink that low, sweetheart." Still chuckling he took the cereal and poured himself a big bowl, sitting down at the table to watch the drama.

"Like you're a lot better," she snapped, darting around Buffy and nabbing a muffin from the counter. Quite pleased with herself she sat down opposite Spike. "And when did I say it had anything to do with an apocalypse?"

"You said it was a Slayer dream."

"Yeah. You think all Slayer's dream about is apocalypses?" This earned her a mysterious blush from Buffy. _I'll have to grill her about that later… _"I could have dreamed about King Kong for all you know."

"Well then it wouldn't have been a Slayer dream, would it?" He glared at her over his spoon.

"It would be if it was going to happen!" Faith shot back.

"Oh yeah, I forgot King Kong was a demon in the shape of a gigantic monkey costume." He rolled his eyes dramatically.

"Will you two please stop???" Buffy snapped, giving them both stern glares. The looks of repentance she received in return caused her to giggle. Especially the one framed by blue eyes. 

"It's a sodding monkey," he muttered under his breath. Two Slayers swatted at him as he rose and meandered over to the refrigerator. After a long, thoughtful moment he grabbed the milk carton and headed back to his cereal. Of course, by this time Buffy had oh-so-craftily stolen his spot and was munching on his precious sugar coated flakes. With a low growl he set down the milk and hunched over her, capturing her in his arms. "Mine."

Looking up at him, the perfect picture of innocence, she grinned. And popped another handful of cereal into her mouth. She squealed as he lifted her from the chair, squirming in his tight embrace as he plopped her down unceremoniously on the floor. Pouting, she wrapped her arms around her knees. "You're no fun."

His eyes danced with mischief as he poured milk over the remainder of his breakfast. "Serves you right, love. No one eats the Big Bad's cereal and goes unpunished." Silently he was already coming up with a thousand little punishments for the girl who was smirking at him from her vantage point on the tile. But they would probably not be administered under the amused gaze of the brunette sitting in front of him. Which reminded him… "Alright, you've got your free meal. Now about the Slayer dream."

Faith sighed. "Alright. I'm out in the desert. Kinda like where we were," she added, gesturing to Buffy. "It's hot, right? Brutally hot. Midday sun shining down. And those demons, man, they are everywhere. Just coming up in droves. So I'm trying to fight them, 'cept I'm not doing any good. It's like…it's like I'm not there, almost. I mean, I'm feeling it and all, but I can't help. You were there." Her gaze shifted from her muffin wrapper to the two blondes now sitting together on the chair. "Both of you. And you were fighting and all, really giving them hell. And I kept trying to help, but they just kept coming…" Her voice trailed off until it was barely a whisper. "I was…I was trying to save you. But I couldn't even touch those things."

"Dawn," Buffy gasped suddenly. Shifting in position on Spike's lap so she could see them both she continued. "Last night. You know how Dawn woke up with a nightmare?" Uncomprehending blue eyes watched her carefully as he nodded in response. "She said she was in the desert. It was hot. And there were demons…" 

"Hold on a tick." Spike frowned. "How'd the Nibblet get the whole prophetic dreams bit?" _And how come I don't have it,_ he added internally. After all, it was only fair, what with him being all super hero-y and that. He should get the dreams that came along with the job, shouldn't he?

"Maybe it has something to do with the Key?" Faith suggested. 

Buffy shrugged. "I don't know. What I have to figure out is if anyone else had this dream." At that very moment she noticed a sleepy red head stumble into the kitchen. "Morning Willow."

Willow frowned, looking at the clock. And Faith. And Buffy, sitting in Spike's lap wearing pajamas. "Little early for a Scooby meeting, don't you think?"

"Did you have any…weird dreams last night?" _It could just be a coincidence, Buffy. Not the first time we've all dreamed the same thing. _Try as she might, she couldn't shake the icky feeling that was invading her gut. And something told her it wasn't from a few mouthfuls of Frosted Flakes. Not even the cool hand gently massaging the back of her neck could slow her pounding heart as she awaited her friend's response.

Willow's eyes widened slightly. "Yeah actually, I did. I was in a desert, and there were these-"

"-Evil kangaroo demons?"

"-…Yeah." She tilted her head at Faith. Shaking her head quickly she continued. "There were demons, tons of them. And you were fighting them. I was there too, I mean not there there, but there…" She frowned a brief moment. "Anyway, I could see them, but it was like-"

"-You were a ghost?" Faith finished for her again.

"-…Yeah." Becoming a bit annoyed at the seemingly psychic powers of the Slayer, she inhaled sharply. "Wait. You had it too, didn't you."

"Dawn did to," Buffy whispered quietly. 

"Dawn did what?" Kennedy asked, yawning as she entered the kitchen. With a quick smile to her girlfriend she set about making coffee. She was surprised when she took her hand gently in hers.

"Ken, hon…" Willow bit her lip uncertainly. "Did you have a dream last night?"

The Slayer's eyes popped open in an almost comical fashion. The rest of the group sighed.

"I knew it. I bloody knew it." Spike tapped his fingers against the tabletop agitatedly. "You're all having psychic dreams. Brilliant." In any other situation, he would have found Buffy running her fingers through his mussed curls to be extremely relaxing. But right now it was putting him even more on edge. Practically the entire Scooby gang had admitted to having dreams about him and his Slayer-which, on it's own was disturbing-and apparently they didn't survive it. He could tell by the way everyone's stories trailed off. They bloody died in those dreams, he'd bet his unlife, and the bunch on wankers was so afraid of admitting it, it made him want to laugh. Or scream.

"We don't know if they're psychic," Willow corrected him slowly. She certainly didn't want to get on the bad side of the vampire before seven o'clock in the morning. But for all they knew, it was just a coincidence. _Right?_ "We could, um, we could just be under a…a spell!" Rushing over to the bookcase she grabbed a text, flipping through it wildly. "It's probably just a spell-"

"-That would make us all dream about creatures most of us have never seen?" Kennedy took the book from her, smiling softly. "That would involve demons that there is no record of, and a prophecy no one has ever translated?"

"I'm working on it…" Another mental light bulb went off in the witch's head. "Hey! The prophecy! Maybe there's something about this in there."

            "Let's hope so." Buffy stood up, trying to ignore the question in those blue eyes. The question of _why didn't we have those dreams?_ She couldn't answer him. She didn't know. While dreams had invaded her again last night, she was fairly sure they had nothing to do with the dreams all of her friends had experienced. Unless they had also dreamt up dream conversations in Spike's crypt… Picking up the phone she dialed the now familiar number of her Watcher.

            _BRRRING_

_            BRRRING_

_            BRR-_ "Hello?" Enter extremely groggy sounding male voice. 

            "Xander?"

            "Buffy?"

            "Hi." She looked around the group once more before sighing softly into the receiver. "Did you…did you have a weird dream last night?"

            "…Yes…" 

            "Did it involve me and Spike fighting the Betugk Swetuk demons and you not being able to help us?" 

"Okay, now that's just creepy."

She smiled. "It's okay. Apparently it was a very popular dream to be had. Hey, can I talk to Giles?"

"Yeah." She could hear him press his hand over the phone, but it still didn't muffle his bellow. _Poor Giles._

"Buffy? Is everything alright?"

"Peachy-keen. Well, except for this dream thing."

"Dream thing?"

"You had a dream last night, about me and Spike fighting those demons in Africa?"

"…Why, yes I did. How did you know that?"

"Because Xander had it too. And Willow. And Kennedy. And Faith. And Dawn." She sighed again. "And I'm going to bet money the Slayers in Cleveland, and Robin."

"Robin, did you have a dream last night about Buffy and Spike?" Silence. Then softer, "Well."

"I think you need to get over here. Willow seems to think she can find something in the prophecy."

"I'll be right over. I wouldn't worry about it too much, Buffy…"

"Sure," she lied through her teeth. This whole thing was making her incredibly uptight. "See you soon."

"Goodbye."

Hanging the phone up slowly, she turned back to the table. "They had it too." She frowned when she noticed an empty seat where a vampire used to be. She was just about to ask about it when Willow interrupted her.

"He went upstairs to get Dawnie. Figured she'd like to be in on any Scooby happenings." She smiled kindly at her. And silently wondered since when Buffy had been aware of where Spike was at all times. 

A few minutes later, the entire gang was milling around the now crowded living room. Buffy stood in the entryway to the kitchen, eyeing the crowd like it was an angry mod instead of a group of her closest friends. She jumped at the cool hand that reached out to brush her bare shoulder. 

"Tense much?" He quipped as he stepped closer, lightly running his fingers down her arm and around the back of her hand. He would have done anything just to help her, but he didn't know what she was feeling. Why she was so incredibly tense. Why she appeared so wary of these people who were closer than family to her. And it was bugging the heck out of him. When he felt her lean back against him though, all thoughts of frustration left his mind. And all that was left was her. 

            She sighed. As much as she knew she had to go to the leader thing, she would much rather just be here. With him. It had taken them years to get this far and then what? Another apocalypse. And no time to do, and say, the things that they needed to. _Everything happens for a reason, Buffy. You can't expect the world to suddenly be peaceful just because, for once, you're happy. It isn't that simple._ A pout crept onto her face as he slid his arms around her hips. _It isn't that fair._ She let herself bask in the moment before finally pulling away, catching his hand in hers and going into the living room. And the ever-watchful eyes of Xander and Giles. Very purposefully she led him to the only seat left, finally tearing herself away from him to stand alone in the middle of the room. "Alright. Who wants to go first."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Buffy?"

            She looked over her shoulder, surprised he was still there. "Hey Xander. Not going home tonight?"

            He smiled uncertainly. "Course I am. But I need to talk to you first." Casting a weary glance at the vampire at her side, he took a few steps towards the door.

            "Oh." She followed him out onto the front porch. For some odd reason, she felt a speech coming on.

            Closing the door, he turned to face her. "So…"

            "So."

            Xander sighed. "Is everything alright, Buffy? Is everything okay?"

            That wasn't something she'd been expecting. "Everything is fine." Her eyes narrowed. "Why?"

            "I just figured…" He gestured towards the house. "I mean, it kinda seemed like you and Spike…"

            "Me and Spike…?" Buffy's eyebrow rose in suspicion. 

            "I know what it feels like to be depressed," he said in a low voice. "Believe me." Trying to tear his thoughts from a certain blonde he continued. "I don't know what has been happening lately in your life, but you know you can always talk to me."

            She frowned. "What do you mean, Xander." 

            "I mean if you're depressed-"

            "No. What. Do. You. Mean." Buffy clenched her jaw angrily.

            He held up his hands in a defensive gesture. "Hey hey, no need for the harshness. I'm just remembering a certain other time my friend was turning to certain dead things for…comfort."

            "Is that what you think this is?" She asked, incredulous. "You think I'm using him?"

            "I think he's using you," he snapped back.

            "Spike has a soul now. Spike is good. Spike-even before the soul-has been better to me than anyone else I've ever known." With each declaration she pointed towards the front door, and the bleached blonde who was more than likely listening from the other side.

            Xander winced. "Buffy-"

            "You have no right to judge me. I know what you're thinking; 'poor Buffy, she must be really pathetic if she's going to him again'."

            "No, Buffy." The words came out so softly she had to lean in to hear them. "I just…I just don't want to see you hurt again. And this thing with Spike…"

            "This thing with Spike is the best thing I've ever known," she declared quietly. "For the first time in my life, I don't feel like I have to be Miss Perfect. I don't always have to be the one who saves the world or takes care of everyone. And I don't have to go running to my friends for approval." Green eyes met brown as she took a step closer to him. "I'll try to understand you, reason with you even, but at the end of the day I'm only home if I'm in his arms." 

            Slowly, he nodded. "I get you, Buffy." Offering her a small smile in apology he gave her a little hug. "Don't see why it's him, though."

            She shrugged. "It doesn't matter, does it?"

            "If he makes you happy…" He smirked. "I guess I could learn not to hate the guy." Uncomfortably, he took a step back. "I should probably get going."

            "Probably." She waved as he went to his car and drove off. For a long while she stood out there, watching the clouds slowly drift by above her. She hadn't even thought about what she had said to him-it had just come out. Every single heartfelt word. Looking back, it made perfect sense. Spike was the only stable person in her entire life. The only person who-except for the whole wanting to kill her thing in the beginning-had never left her. Even the Scoobies had shut her out, but he…he was always there. Even when she had begged him to leave. And she realized with a start that he always would be. Suddenly, she wasn't scared anymore. 

            The clearing of a throat behind her caused her to turn around. He was leaning against the doorframe, bathed in sunlight and smiling at her. A smile that quietly admitted he had heard the entire conversation. The thought crossed her mind to say something. Walk up to him. Do something to fill the silence. But she was completely lost in the blue of his eyes. Before she could react he was in front of her, running his knuckles along her face so tenderly her knees weakened. He seemed to notice, as he wrapped an arm protectively around her waist and pulled her closer. Slowly his face sunk down to hers, his nose delicately tracing her jaw before he kissed her. Her arms slipped around his chest as she hummed her appreciation. For a moment her mind flashed back to the dream she'd had the night before, and what she had said to him. _You are my heart…_

            He could feel her smiling as their lips brushed again in one of a thousand sweet, short kisses. Deciding to not bother trying to figure out what thought had created the expression on his lady's features, he laid more delicate kisses against her skin. To hell with impending apocalypses. So what if they might die in the battle to come. And who cared if he was forced to leave tomorrow. Right now he was here, wrapped up in her arms. He was home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 Awww. I didn't intend to end on such a sappy note but…eh, it works. :) And, more importantly, it _drops hints towards the finale!!!_ *wink* Can you tell I'm working very hard to make everything come together? Can you tell I'm actually loosing sleep trying to think these things out? Can you tell I'm on a bit of a sugar high? :) 

Please review!


	16. Beckoning

AN: Tehe. After 15 chapters I finally managed to work the title into the story! Aren't you proud? :) I miss my muse…so very much…AHHH! Okay. I'm done. I promise. Did you like that last chapter? I really don't have anything to say…very interesting…well, here's the next chapter of the story…hope you like it … review please!

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss. And Disney :).

Beckoning 

            Standing in the backyard, she watched the sun set. If she closed her eyes, she could almost pretend she was standing back on her back porch. Leaning against the railing. Wondering what great adventure the next day would bring. But when she opened her eyes she was back in Paradise. Standing in the small patch of grass that could be called a yard. And dreaming of a world that had literally collapsed, months before. Cigarette smoke drifted past her shoulder, jolting her out of her little fantasy. 

            "Nice, isn't it?" He asked, nodding towards the sun as it faded over the horizon. With a smirk he edged out of the shadow he had been occupying and into it's warm light. No matter how many times he did that, it was still fun. Plus the look of amusement it caused on his lady was priceless. 

            Sighing, she turned so she could see him. He was standing with his eyes closed, no doubt savoring the warmth against his face. Without thinking she walked up to him and lightly pressed her lips to his. A smile twinkled in her eyes at the surprise in his. She didn't understand that. Even after all they'd been through, all she'd said, he still looked at her in pure wonder when she kissed him. Like he couldn't believe what was happening. Winding her arms around his neck she kissed him again.

            After a long, sweet moment he broke the kiss with a little smile. "And what'd I do to deserve that, love?" he murmured against her skin. 

            She shrugged. "Don't know. Don't care." Playfully she took his hand and attempted to pull him towards the house. "Come on."

            Spike's eyebrow shot up. With a firm pull he jerked her back against him, enjoying the shiver that crept through her as his fingers ran lightly over her body. When they reached her neck they paused, lightly tracing the marks left there by other vampires. He must have growled or something, because she caught his straying hand with her own and drew him closer to herself.

            "Don't worry about those," she whispered, trying to extinguish the look of pain that was written across his face. With a deep breath she tipped her head back to look up at him. "Yours now."

            He must have looked shocked, for she giggled. Blinking slowly at her, he murmured, "Mine?"

            "All yours." Buffy grinned. Standing on her tiptoes she gave him a quick peck. Of course, it quickly turned into more than just a quick peck. After a dizzying moment she gasped, drawing in the air she had forgotten she'd needed. He just grinned at her, one of those impish grins that she knew meant he was up to something. Feigning a yawn, she again tried to draw him back into the house. "Sleepy. Time for bed."

            "Sleepy?" Spike followed her up to the house, pressing her against the wood of the door. A little smile tugging at her lips told him otherwise.

            "Okay, maybe not sleepy," she admitted quietly, her eyes becoming serious. Actually, sleep was the furthest thing from her mind. But it wouldn't be any fun to tell him that now, would it? She managed to open the door from her position, sending the two of them flying into the kitchen. She stumbled over the rug, falling and bringing the astonished vampire along for the ride. They ended up sprawled across the tile, noses brushing. 

            Mentally he knew he stayed that way a little longer than necessary. Finally remembering there was a teenager in the house who could discover them at any given moment, he stood and tried to recover his dignity by brushing imaginary dust from his jacket. Of course, the gorgeous blonde lying at his feet chuckling softly wasn't helping matters at all. And the little William in his head was reminding him of his former mannerly self. Holding out a hand he lifted her to her feet. "Klutz," he whispered into her ear teasingly. 

            Buffy rolled her eyes. Quietly, she tiptoed towards the staircase. _Not that tiptoeing is going to make up for those dang boots…_ she sent an accusing glare to the footwear behind her. 

            "Buffy?"

            Both parties jumped as the teenager popped out from the kitchen. She grinned at them.

            "I'm going to go to a movie with Jake and Anna, okay?"

            Buffy crossed her arms in her typical 'guardian' pose. "What movie?"

            "Pirates of the Caribbean."

            "That sounds like a good movie," Spike quipped.

            "It is. Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom. Yummy."

            Buffy raised an eyebrow at her sister's excitement. "Who's driving you?"

            "Um…Jake?"

            "Try again."

            "Oh come on!" Dawn stuck out her lower lip slightly. "Jake's a great driver. He's given me rides before!"

            "Oh really?"

            "Who's this 'Jake'?" Spike growled. For some reason the idea of his Nibblet getting rides from a guy he didn't know-or any guy, for that matter-just rubbed him the wrong way. 

            Buffy grinned at his comment. He was so cute when he got all parental on Dawn. Finally, she shrugged. "Fine. But I want you home by ten."

            "Ten? Most of my friends' curfews are midnight!"

            "Well…eleven then. But no later." She gave her sister a little hug. "Have fun."

            Dawn smiled. "Thanks. Bye!"

            "That was interesting," Spike murmured, his eyes glittering with laughter. "I thought you never let the Bit out of your sight."

            She shrugged again, this time not so innocently. "I thought she could do with a night of teenage normalcy."

            "You wanted to get her out of the house!" He accused.

            She nodded vigorously, earning her a grin. "Yup." With that she turned and headed up the stairs. When she was at the top she noticed he was still standing on the landing, watching her with the most puzzled look. "What's the matter?"

            "Buffy…" He walked up the stairs slowly, until he was just beneath her. "I-"

            She laid two fingers against his lips, preventing him from saying anything else. "Shhh." With her other hand she traced his jaw. "Love you." A gentle kiss separated each statement. "So much. Can't say. Want you," she purred into his ear. 

 "Love you," he repeated, wrapping his arms around her tiny frame and stepping closer. "God, love you so much."  

            They stumbled down the hallway, never breaking eye contact even when it was necessary. In her room they collapsed onto the bed, too lost in feverish kisses to bother with the door. Blinding passion consumed them both as articles of clothing were carelessly discarded…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Oh come on. This is PG-13 for crying out loud! (well, PG-13 if you ignore the, er, vocabulary of this next bit…) I'm trying to keep it that way! :) Use you're imaginations, I'm sure you can figure it out…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Hours later, the front door opening woke him. He quickly jumped up and shut the door, least Dawn come up to discover them. Looking back to the bed, he smiled. She was curled up under the covers, hair spread out around her and the smuggest little grin tugging at her lips as she slept. _Beautiful._ He stood there watching her a few minutes before she stirred, aware of the empty space next to her. Questioning green eyes still filled with sleep met his own as he slid in beside her. "Bit's home," he murmured. She nodded, wrapping an arm around his waist and closing her eyes again. His fingers went back to their old habit of playing with her hair. Soon, it had lulled her back to sleep.

            He lay there, completely content in her embrace, thinking about the evening that had created such exhaustion in his goddess. A smirk threatened to surface on his face as he recollected what they had done. _I wonder if she even knew…_She had to. There was no way not to notice the change that had occurred between them. Before when they had been together it had been passionate, true, but so passionate it seemed at times primitive. Primitive in a sort of 'I have to fuck your brains out for our species to survive' way. But now…now, it was poetry. That was the only way he could describe it. Oh, the passion was there, make no doubt, but now it was loving and tender as well. They hadn't had sex or fucked; no, they had made love. _And it was grand. _He drifted to sleep with the pleasant memory of that still in his mind. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The alarm ringing shrilly mere inches from her head reminded her that she had to get up. Groaning, she reached over and slapped it off the nightstand. Unfortunately it kept ringing, now out of her reach. With a sigh of defeat she threw back the covers. _Good morning world_, she thought cheerily_._ Now wide-awake, she turned off the alarm and bounded out of her bedroom towards the bathroom. And nearly collided with the closed door. "Hey!"

            "Sorry Dawnie," Willow said sheepishly as she slid out, bundled in gigantic white towels. Quickly she tiptoed back down the stairs, past the suspiciously empty sofa, and back into her room.

            Dawn hurried about quickly, partly because she was late again and partly because she knew Buffy would be outside the door in about five minutes. Her sister just had this knack for wanting the bathroom at the exact same time as her…_Damn, out of shampoo._ She'd have to remind her to go buy some more. Finishing up her shower she brushed her teeth, blow-dried her hair and dashed back to her room. After a few moments of frantically searching for her math homework, she noticed the lack of noise from the hallway. Which meant that Buffy hadn't gone in there yet. Which probably meant she wasn't even awake. Which was very, very bad, considering she was going back to work today. Stuffing the offending worksheet in her folder she went out and knocked lightly on her door. "Buffy?" Incoherent mumbling could be heard from inside. She knocked harder. "Buffy?" Loosing her patience she opened the door. 

            "Hey!"

            "Bloody hell!"

            With a shriek she slammed the door shut. But it was too late. The mental trauma of catching her sister and Spike naked in bed had taken full effect. Numbly she gathered her things and went downstairs.

            "Morning!" Kennedy chirped from the stove, flipping a pancake. 

            Dawn managed a little smile, grabbing her lunch from the counter and an apple from the refrigerator. "Late. Got to go. See ya." With that she went out the front door, speed walking towards the bus stop. 

            "Oh shit."

            "Maybe she didn't see us."

            "Yeah, she just screamed and slammed the door for no reason."

            He winced at her harsh tone. "Alright, maybe that wasn't the ideal…position for her to see…"

            "Us! Naked!" Buffy was standing at the foot of the bed, shaking a shoe at him as she put on her robe. 

            Spike shrugged. "Maybe you should talk to her." They both jumped at the knock on the door.

            "Don't come in!" She darted to the doorway, opening it enough to stick her head out. "Oh. Hey Willow."

            "Hi…" She frowned slightly at her friend's behavior. "Um…"

            "What?"

            "Where's Spike?"

            Coughing came from the bed. She ignored it. "Why?"

            Willow shrugged. "The sofa's all sofa-y. Plus Dawn came downstairs looking like she'd seen a ghost. Ooh! Is there a ghost?"

            Buffy felt a deep blush creeping up her cheeks. "Nope. No ghost. And Spike's-"

            "Pet, have you seen my other boot?" Spike called out much louder than was necessary, still lying amongst the sheets.

            Willow's eyes widened as she too blushed. "Ah. Okay. Mystery solved. I'll just be going then…" Quickly she fled back downstairs and out of the twilight zone. She was just now starting to deal with the whole 'Buffy loves Spike' thing, and now she goes and drops the bomb of 'Buffy's sleeping with Spike'? _I'm not judging. Watch me not judge. Totally not judging, that's me…_

            Buffy turned around to glare at the very smug vampire. "You just had to do that, didn't you."

            He scowled as he sat up. "What, you want to hide this from them? Again?" 

            "No!" She sat down next to him, her hand instinctively finding his. "I don't want to hide this. No hiding. I just don't think that was the…ideal way of telling them." A laugh tickled in her throat at the grin he now wore. "Alright?"

            He shrugged. "Whatever you want, pet." With that he got up and began getting dressed. After a moment he realized she was still sitting there, watching him. "Enjoying the show?" He inquired. 

            Buffy giggled. "Very much so." She let out a yelp when he threw a pair of pants at her. "Hey!" Glaring at the blonde, she finished getting dressed in silence. And sneaking glances whenever she thought he wasn't looking. 

            When he went downstairs, the first thing he noticed was the redhead who refused to meet his glance. The second was the pile of books that surrounded her. "Bit of heavy reading, isn't it?"

            Willow jumped. "Oh. Hey." Her eyes scanned the texts. "Um, yeah, I guess so…just checking references to the book and the Betugk Swetuk."

            "They're mentioned in those?"

            "Well, the demons are…I'm checking on the book now. It has an inscription on the front cover, so I'm hoping…" Her words trailed off as she turned another page. After staring at a drawing for a minute, she sighed. "That it'll be in here somewhere. I think…I think they're connected."

            Spike raised his eyebrows. "Connected?"

            "Well, the book does mentions demons, so I'm thinking these are the guys."

            "What about killing them? Anything on that?" He looked at a sketch Faith had done of the creature. Personally, he didn't want to face one of those without knowing how to take it down. And from what it managed to do to the girls…there was no way anyone was going back there until they knew for certain how to destroy them. 

            Willow sighed again. "Just that cryptic 'one tool crafted before the time of steel' bit. I don't understand what it means." With a shrug she went back to her translations. "Hopefully the next chapter will mention it."

            "Next chapter?"

            She nodded. "What I have so far is only part of the first chapter. Well, most of it. There are still a couple of chapters that we haven't even started deciphering." 

            He rubbed his forehead. "Brilliant. Bloody brilliant."

            "It might go faster if we had more people working on it," she hinted, pushing a few of the smaller books towards the leery vampire. 

            A snort escaped him. "Don't you have the Watcher helping you?"

            "Well, yeah…" 

            "So why make me do it?"

            "Because the faster we get this done the faster we can go kill these things," Buffy said as she came down the stairs. "Besides, this is what being a Scooby's all about!"

            He grumbled as he pulled out a chair and sat down. "Never asked to be a sodding Scooby. One minute you're the Big Bad, next thing you know you're babysitting the Slayer's kid sister and watching the telly with her friends…" His complaints stopped when Buffy strode over, placing a kiss on his lips before continuing on into the kitchen. "Bring on the books," he managed meekly. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Is this it?"

            "No."

            "How about this one?"

            "No…"

            "This?"

            "No! Remind me again why you're helping us?"

            "Helping us? He's barely reading!"

            "Well, maybe I could if you would just shut you're bleeding trap!"

            "Shut _my _trap?!?"

            "If everyone could just calm down we might actually get some work done!"

            "You're one to talk!"

            "Why are you ganging up on me? Is this some sort of British thing?"

            "Oh yes. We're out to get you, whelper."

            "Certainly not!"

            Buffy pressed her palms against her ears. "Stop it!" Ever since returning home from the gym half an hour prior, she had listened to these people bicker. And they were driving her mad.

            The three men looked up at the petite Slayer. 

            "He started it…"

            "Oh bugger off." 

            She put her hands on her hips. "What, am I going to have to separate you two?" She waited until they had all taken their seats again before continuing. "Honestly, you're acting like a bunch of…kids!"

            Giles sighed. "Forgive us. It's just been…well; it hasn't exactly been a productive day. And we've been working for hours."

            "All in favor of calling it a day say 'ay'." Xander stuck his hand up into the air. Surely enough, several other arms shortly followed him.

            "We can't stop now!" Willow poured herself another cup of coffee. "Look at all we've gotten done!"

            Spike raised an eyebrow. "Look at all _you've_ gotten done. Us…well, we haven't done a bloody thing." He went back to flipping through yet another musty analog. He was beyond frustrated. He was a pissed off British man who had spent the better part of his day reading old books written in Latin. 

            "I'm sure you did lots," she offered with a little smile.

            Buffy stepped up behind her friend. "So, what did you get anyways?"

            Willow gestured to her papers excitedly. "I finished the first chapters translations, plus some of the second."

            "Well, let's hear it," Giles sighed, whipping his glasses on his sweater. 

            "Oh. Okay." Clearing her throat, she began. " 'Without heart, she will fall.' That was the end of the last part… 'The key to achieving this balance is within. The answer they search for is before them. It has always been; crafted before any known thing. But it will only be discovered at the time of it's beckoning.'"

            "Key?" Dawn asked hesitantly. She really, really didn't feel like getting cut open again. 

            Spike smiled at the teen. "Different key, Bit." In truth, he had no idea what it had meant. And isn't that what it had said would happen? It will only be discovered when it's actually needed? How convenient. 

            "This is the next chapter. 'It was created long ago to keep the dimensions in balance. Before the times of right and wrong. The world was neither good nor bad; it simply was. There was no concept of evil or righteousness; such things did not exist. The entirety of it all was placed into this one energy. So basic was its purpose: to store all the pure and un-pure things within itself, and keep within the lands peace. But it could not last forever. The Powers, so concerned with containing these powerful forces, failed to notice when they could no longer be contained. It burst so suddenly there was no time to correct what had been done. The worst of all evils and the greatest of all goods were released to wreck havoc upon our worlds. And that they did. For centuries untold demons roamed the Earth freely, while the divine took to the skies. 

            " 'The Powers were given an opportunity to set the world right again. And so righteousness, embodied in the form of a Chosen One descended onto the plains. This solution would not be permanent. The scales would balance, surely, but at any given moment could tip. A solution was proposed. The prophecy was written: Only when virtue in form blends with malevolence incarnate may the worlds rest.'" 

            Buffy stared at her for a good long while. Finally, she let out a low whistle. "Wow." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ooh! Ahh! It burns! This writers block… *clutches chest* the pain…

Won't you help me? Won't you send me comforting reviews and sympathize with my current condition? Won't you give me a reason to want to beat this crippling disease???

:) 


	17. The Taste Of Her

AN: Thanks to everyone for the fantabulous reviews! They give me the strength to keep fighting the good fight…:) It's so frustrating; I have all of these really great ideas, but I can't seem to get them down! Oh well, I can try…and try I will. Wish me luck!

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss.

The Taste Of Her

"Ninety-six…ninety-seven…come on, just three more!"

The man collapsed onto the mat with a loud groan. "Oh come on! What good are three sit-ups really going to do?"

Buffy looked down at him amusedly. "I don't know. But if you don't do them then you'll just have to admit that I can do more sit-ups than you…" She grinned as he rushed through the rest of his exercises. "There. Was that so bad?"

"Yes." Feigning a scowl he stood up, towering over her. "It really was."

"So you're too tired for kickboxing, then?" She asked, throwing a towel at him. 

He shook his head vigorously. "Never." With that, they headed towards the punching bag. After wrapping his hands he began pummeling it, under the careful instruction of his petite trainer. "So." He attempted to talk while throwing punches and kicks. "I was. Wondering. If you wanted to. Go out. Sometime for. Dinner?"

"Alex…" She waited until the bag stopped swinging in her arms before responding. "That's really nice of you, but I'll have to pass."

He raised an eyebrow. "Ah. Okay." For a few minutes he said nothing, putting all of his concentration into the task before him. Then he said, "Just out of curiosity…is there someone else or do I just really repulse you?"

She smiled. "Actually, there is someone else."

"Hmmm." Alex scratched his chin, a slight smirk playing at his lips. "Could I take him?"

Buffy tilted her head, examining the client before her. Six foot two. One hundred and ninety pounds. Honestly, she could take him with both hands tied behind her back. And Spike? _Blindfolded and chained to a wall he could do some major damage._ She felt another grin coming on. "I don't think so."

"Oh well. No harm in asking." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Are you okay?"

            "Hmm?" Spike looked up from the pencil he had been twirling.

            "You seem kind of…fidgety." Willow gestured to the pencil. And to his hand, which was drumming out a familiar beat on the tabletop. And finally to his leg, which had been bouncing up and down for the past half an hour. 

            He smirked. "Sorry Red. Guess I am a bit antsy. Say-" Jumping from his chair, he started towards the front door. "How about I go out and do a patrol?"

            "Spike?" She pointed to the window. "It's daytime."

            "So? I don't poof in the sun anymore, remember?"

            "Yeah, but other vampires do. Meaning you probably won't find much." 

            "I could go get the Bit from school!"

            "Isn't that boy giving her a ride?"

            He snorted. 

            Laughing, she said, "I take it you don't like him very much."

            "Never said that."

            "You didn't have to."

            "Well then, if you're so smart, you don't need me. I'm going out for a smoke." 

            She shook her head as the vampire stomped out onto the porch. He'd do just about anything to get out of doing more work. Of course, she didn't blame him. He'd been in full research mode for over a day now. And the fact that he'd survived Xander and Giles the day before was a miracle unto itself. _Maybe I should take a brake too,_ she thought tiredly. She hadn't slept in at least forty-eight hours. The empty coffee cups and energy bar wrappers proved that. _Sleep might be nice right about now…_Standing from her seat, she stretched and stumbled over to the sofa. She was asleep before her head hit the cushions.

            He let out a deep, content sigh. _Lovely, lovely cigarette, how I adore thee…_ After admiring the miracle of engineering in his hand for a few seconds, he took another drag. Funny how such a simple thing could work such wonders on him. Sure, smoking did help enhance his Big Bad image. That was why he'd started, initially. But now, he smoked mainly because it helped calm his nerves. And right now, his nerves definitely needed calming. Days without a fight, or even a spar, had taken its toll. He reckoned Buffy was feeling the same way. Restless. _I'll have to see if she wants to dance when she gets home._ An old car pulling up to the curb caused him to look up.

            "Thanks for the ride."

            "Anytime. I'll call you tonight, okay?"

            "Sure. Well, bye!"

            "Bye."

            Dawn skipped up to the house. Life sure was grand. Especially when boys like Jake were going to call tonight. The grin she had been suppressing all the way home was now very prominent on her face. She skidded to a halt when she noticed the blonde figure watching her. "Oh. Hi Spike!"

            Raised eyebrow. "Who was that?"

            "Jake…"

            Narrowing his eyes, he blew smoke out of his mouth slowly. "Hmmm."

            She sat down next to him. "What? You don't like him?" Not even giving him time to talk, she continued. "He's really nice and funny and smart and I know you'd love him if you just gave him a chance!"

            "I highly doubt that," he said. "And how do you know he's such a great guy? School's only been in session a little more than a month, and you were new. Well, Buff did say you went to the summer school…" He frowned slightly. Any boy who went to summer school was definitely a troublemaker. 

            Dawn smiled. "I don't know him that well, true. That's what's fun about it! Can't you just be happy I'm making friends?"

            "Friends?"

            She blushed. "For now. If something more comes of it…"

            "Don't want anyone hurting my Bit," he huffed. 

            Her tone softened. "I'm growing up, Spike."

            He looked up at her. Something was in her blue eyes that he'd never noticed before. Strength. As much as he hated to admit it, she _was_ growing up. It was all too evident the way boys looked at her when they went out. But now, she could handle it. Gruffly, he mumbled, "I know." 

            "Say, do you want to go surprise Buffy down at the gym?" 

            His eyes lit up. Looking down at his watch, he noticed the time. "She gets off work soon, doesn't she?"

            Nodding, she leapt from the step. "Can I drive?"

            "I don't think your sis would be too keen on that…"

            "Oh come on. Please? I'm a good driver!"

            Reluctantly, he agreed. "Fine. Go get the keys." He watched the teenager bound into the house. He'd been planning on going to get Buffy anyways. Giles had dropped her off as he was heading back home this morning, so she was stuck there without a ride. Remembering his earlier plan, he called out "Might want to bring your homework with you Nibblet, I was going to see if the old Slayer was up for a fight."

            "Alright." With keys and backpack in hand she hopped into the drivers side of their SUV. Buffy had purchased it upon moving to Paradise, but she rarely let her younger sister drive it. Even if she was the better driver of the two. "Ready?" She asked.

            Spike tightened his seatbelt. _Please, don't make me regret this._ "Let's go."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Shoving her street clothes into her bag, Buffy shut her locker with a fierce _bang_. Ever since being hit on her day had really gone downhill. Trying to get out of shape people to run half a mile was really hard work. Especially when she had to run along with them at a pace so slow she felt like screaming. _Ok. I might have a little bit of Slayer energy that needs to be burned. No big deal. _She figured she'd shower when she got home, then go out for a patrol…well, maybe save the shower for after the patrol. Never know what kind of gooey demons one might encounter. With a sigh she hurried out of the locker room and towards the main entrance. Halfway there she remembered she didn't have a ride. _Great. Now I'm going to have to call someone. Could this day get any better?_

            "Hi Buffy!" Dawn walked through the front door grinning.

            _Maybe it can._ "Dawn? How'd you get here?"

            "I drove!"

            "You _what_?"

            "And nearly killed me in the process," A British voice commented from behind her. He smirked when she spun around to glare at him.

            "You let her drive?"

            "Nice to see you too. I was wondering…do you want to spar?"

            She frowned at the sudden change of topic. "Huh?"

            "Spar. Fight. Wrestle. Dance. You know, have a scrap? Pick a brawl?" Spike bounced lightly on the balls of his feet. "Need to burn some energy." 

            Buffy smiled. Whether or not the idea of a fight with Spike or the sight of a hyper Spike was causing the smile, she didn't know. "Sure. But Dawn-"

            "-Came supplied with hours of biology." She rolled her eyes. "Don't worry, I have plenty to keep myself occupied." 

            "Okay." Buffy looked around awkwardly. Finally, her eyes settled on an empty dance studio. "Shall we?"

            Duck. Swing. Jump. She landed a kick to his chest before flipping to the other side of the room. Breathlessly, she called out "Is that all?"

            "You're the one who's panting, pet," he reminded her as he took a dive towards her. Grabbing onto one of her wrists he pulled her around, kneeing her in the stomach before she slid from his grasp. He managed to avoid most of the punches she threw at him while talking. "Haven't you been training?"

            "Kind of hard to train when you're immobile." She grunted when she fell back onto the floor. Lucky for her he didn't step away fast enough, so with a quick leg sweep he was laying next to her, groaning. 

            "I meant when I was…gone." He sat up to look at her. "You weren't slaying?"

            She shrugged. "Not really. I was helping out the girls when they needed it, but I was basically retired." Deciding they'd had enough conversation she stood up, offering him a hand. When he took it she yanked him up, sending him face first into a pile of mats.

            "No fair."

            "Serves you right."

            "We'll see about that," he growled as he found his feet. Assaulting her with a flurry of kicks and hits he managed to back her up against the wall. Momentarily he forgot about fighting, watching her arch her back in anticipation of his next attack. He was quite pleased by her surprise when he kissed her. After a brief moment she shoved him back, sending him into defense. He couldn't help but notice the twinkle in her eyes when she pinned him to the floor a few minutes later.

            "Too easy," she purred into his ear. Jumping off of him she bent forwards, pressing her palms to the cool floor. Slowly she lifted her legs and straightened her back until her toes pointed towards the ceiling. In her inverted position she could see him still lying there, smirking. Eventually he stood up, approaching her cautiously. Without upsetting her balance she caught him in the face with her heel. 

            Rubbing his jaw, he muttered, "Show off." _Two can play at this game, you know._ Before she could do anything he had his arms wrapped around her legs. As she protested he flung her up in the air, watching her toss head over heels and finally come to land facing him. He grinned at the pout on her flushed face.

            "No fair."

            "Who said I fought fair, love?" Unable to resist he leaned over and kissed her again. His eyes flew open when her blood entered his mouth. _Must have split her lip fighting,_ he thought, trying to pull away from her. But for some reason, he couldn't. Instead he gently lapped at the cut, little explosions going off in his mind with every sip. She obviously didn't notice; she was kissing him just as eagerly as ever. _This is bad, Spike. This is no good. Oh god, which taste…It_ was better than he'd ever imagined. Blood and roses and power and vanilla all combined into something utterly her.Try as he might, he could not break the kiss. He was completely lost in the taste of her. It was only after a flash of light that he realized he was sitting on the floor dazed, Buffy several feet from him in a similar condition. Tentatively he whipped his mouth, horrified to discover traces of red upon his lips. 

            "What happened?" She had been kissing him, and now suddenly she was sitting on the floor with a headache and the coppery taste of blood in her mouth. That was a bit odd, to put it lightly. 

            Spike shook his head, trying to chase away the taste of her that still lingered on his tongue. "Don't know," he managed. 

            "Are you guys done yet?" The voice of the girl waiting outside of the studio jolted them both from their thoughts. 

            Pushing the incident to the back of her mind, Buffy stood up and grabbed her bag. "Yeah. We can go now." They walked out to the parking lot in silence. After a lengthy debate she climbed into the passenger side of the car, mentally chastising herself for ever allowing her younger sister to acquire a license.  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Hey Buffster!" Xander grinned as his friend opened the front door.

            She smiled. "Hey." Stepping back, she let him in. "Hate to break it to you, but we're not researching tonight."

            "Didn't Willow tell you?" He wiggled his eyebrows playfully. "I'm taking you girls out for a night on the town." 

            Her eyes trailed over to the silent figure sitting in the living room. "Us girls, eh?"

            Xander's grin faltered. "Huh?" A light bulb went off above his head as he followed her gaze. "Oh. You want the Evil Dead to tag along?"

            "Evil Undead," Spike corrected.

            "Whatever. I was actually expecting that." He shrugged. "I'm only paying for my ladies, though."

            "Like I'd ever let you pay for me." He smirked at the bemused look on the whelp's face. 

            "Am I coming?" Dawn questioned hesitantly. 

            "Of course! We're all going." He nodded towards the other Slayer standing at the foot of the stairs. "There's this club downtown, thought you might want to check it out."

            "Sounds fun," Buffy said. She was headed towards the closet to get her jacket when there was a knock at the door.

            _KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK_

"Did you invite anyone else?" She asked Xander, frowning at the door suspiciously.

            "No…"

            _KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK_

Glancing around at her friends, she went over and opened the door a crack. Her eyes bugged out of her head as she opened it all the way. Silently, she took in the sight of the being standing on her front porch. The tall, brunette being standing on her porch. 

            "Angel?" Willow uttered the name quietly, as if she barely believed it.

            A brief smile passed across his face. "Hi." Turning his attention back to the stunned blonde, he asked, "May I come in?"

            "I…um…of course." 

            A low growl escaped Spike as his grandsire stepped into the house. Instantly, the other vampire's eyes were on him, watching him warily as the rest of the Scoobies greeted him. _Sodding poof. Bloody wanker with his too-gelled hair that stands straight up. Stupid git always brooding…_

"Buffy, I need to talk to you."

            She blinked at him. Once the initial shock of seeing her former love was gone, she realized she was almost annoyed by his presence. _Wonder who I got that from… _"I'm right here. Talk."

            Angel looked around uncomfortably. While they were all watching him curiously, one gaze in particular was really unnerving him. "I…" He lowered his voice until it was barely a whisper. "I had a dream."

            He could have slapped himself in the forehead. Even Peaches was having dreams!

            "Uh huh?"

            "It was about you, you were in the desert fighting these nasty looking demons…"

            Buffy sighed. "That's why you came all the way out here? To tell me about some dream?"

            "I thought…"

            "We had it too," Xander offered.

            "Oh."

            "You could have just called," she said quietly. _It would have been a hell of a lot smarter._ She could feel the masculinity flowing from where she stood. And as interesting as the fight that would surely ensure would be to watch… _No. Bad Buffy. Even if you could get them to agree to the oil thing, it'd still be wrong._ Trying to disengage the images that went along with that thought, she rubbed her fingers against her temples. 

            "Wait, why is he having dreams?" Kennedy frowned.

            Willow shrugged. "I don't know. I'd really like to hear about it though."

            "Later?" Xander squirmed as the many pairs of eyes in the room came to settle on him. "I mean, it's just, we were on our way out…"

            Angel shrugged. "That's okay. It can wait till tomorrow."

            "You can stay on the couch, if you want…"

            Spike started coughing. 

            "I don't want to impose. I'm sure I can find a motel around here with thick shades." Turning, he headed back out the door.

            "Come by tomorrow night, okay?" Buffy tried desperately to control the laugh that was tickling her throat as Spike came up behind her, wrapping an arm around her waist almost possessively in plain view of the older vampire.

            "Tomorrow night." Managing a smile for her he walked to the taxi that was waiting at the curb. 

            "What's his hurry?" Spike asked innocently. Closing his eyes he listened to the sweet sound of her laughter. Let the wanker come and try. He'd love to see it. She was his, body heart and soul. All his. A flash from a dream echoed through his mind.

            _"You are my heart. I am your soul. And together we are one."_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hey! 

I actually managed to write a decent chapter in a sane amount of time! 

Let the world rejoice! 

Dance in the streets and cry out, "hurrah!" 

Or you could just review. *grin*


	18. There Is Only You

AN: Hey everyone! For some reason, every chapter is getting harder and harder to write. Perhaps because I still don't know what I'm doing for the finale? AHH!

The graceful one that is I fell off her bike a few days ago…ow. Oh well, now I'm trapped inside to write lovely little chapters! Hmm…I guess I have nothing else to say. I should just get to the next one... Warning: It sort of turned into a song fic in this first part…whoops… eh. You'll get over it. :)

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss. All lyrics belong to Billy Idol, The Dead Milkmen, and SR-71.

There Is Only You

            _"With a rebel yell, she cried more, more more…"_

            Spike smirked over his beer at the man in front of him. "Got to say it, good job finding this place." 

            Xander shrugged. "Hey, I aim to please."

            He scanned the crowd, nodding his head in time to the music. Out on the floor, the girls were jumping up and down, writhing around to the catchy beat. He grinned when he noticed a particular blonde lip-synching. 

            _"More, more more!"_

"So, um, er…" Xander fidgeted uncomfortably on his bar stool. "Thanks."

            Eyeing him suspiciously, he took another sip of his drink. "For what?"

            "For that." He nodded towards the little Slayer who had captured his heart so many years ago. Laughing nervously, he said, "Can't tell you the last time I'd seen her smile." 

            Spike watched him for a good long moment. _Just when you think you know someone…_ "Well, you're welcome." He chuckled lowly under his breath. 

            _"Know that it would be untrue, know that it would be a lie, if I was to say to you I didn't set your house on fire…"_

            "Hey! Aren't you guys going to come out and dance?" Dawn bounced up to the counter, grabbing onto Xander's hand and trying to pull him towards the center of the room.

            "Why not." Laying a few bills down he stood, turning back to look at the bleached vampire. "You coming?"

            He shook his head. "Think I'll sit this one out." Ordering another drink he turned his attention back to the group of friends. His group of friends. A light smile crossed his face at that thought.

            _"If you love somebody better set them on fire…"_

            "This seat taken?"

            He glanced at the woman standing next to him. "Course not, pet." 

            "I'm Laura." She leaned over to shake his hand. 

            "Spike."

            "Interesting name."

            "So I'm told."

            Letting her eyes take in the male before her, she asked, "So, Spike…come here alone?"

            He shook his head. "Nope."

            "Oh." She slumped slightly in her seat. 

            _"Nobody wants to be alone, so how did I get here?"_

Recognizing the new song, he excused himself and headed out into the throng of people. Because of the slow tempo, they had paired off. He was quite pleased to discover Buffy standing towards the edge of the crowd, alone. Stepping up to her he murmured, "Dance with me."

            _"Does he make you high? Make you real? Does he make you cry? Does he know the way you feel?"_

She smiled as he caught her hand and led her to the center of the dance floor. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pressed her cheek to his shoulder and hummed in contentment. His arms, usually cold, felt warm wrapped around her. 

            _"There is only you…"_

Her breath tickled against the sensitive skin of his neck. Slowly, they rocked back and forth to the beat of the music. _Love you._ For long moments, he did nothing but concentrate on her gentle heartbeat against his still chest. Funny how such a small thing, a heartbeat, could affect him so deeply.Listening to the lyrics, he was caught by the irony of the song.

            _"I had my fears, you let them out, now I wrap myself around you like a blanket full of doubt…"_

Buffy closed her eyes. Momentarily, the entire room faded away until it was just them. Nothing else mattered. They were here, together, happy, and the rest of the world would just have to wait. She smiled as she felt him draw her closer. _I'm not going anywhere, love._

            "In my world…you make me high, you make me real, you make me cry, now you know the way I feel. Love is all around you, your universe is full, but in my world…there is only you."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Okay. Why don't you tell me what happened."

            "Well… it was daytime. I was out in the desert; it was really hot. And I saw Buffy and…and Spike, fighting."

            "These?" She held up the sketch of the Betugk Swetuk.

            Angel nodded. "Yeah. I ran over, tried to help, but I went right through those things. It was like an out of body experience."

            "This has some significance," Giles said. Standing, he walked around to behind Willow. "Everyone here has had a similar dream. Buffy and Spike, fighting the demons. And none of us are able to help. This may imply that when the battle is fought, they will fight alone."

            "Or that they're going to die." He let out a low growl. "I'm not letting anything happen to her."  
            "And what, you don't care about me?" Spike smirked from his hiding spot in the kitchen. Slowly he sauntered out to glare at him. "Why don't you just go back to L.A. and leave the demon slaying to us." 

            Angel raised his eyebrows. "Since when have you been part of this team?"

            "Actually, it may very well just be the two who go off to fight." Giles shrugged. "It is what the dreams seem to be hinting at."

            "Yeah." Dawn crossed her arms over her chest, imitating Spike's stance towards her sister's ex-boyfriend. 

            "Even if you're right, you don't know how to kill those things yet!"

            "We will." Buffy stepped into the room, purposefully putting herself in-between the two vampires. "Look, the prophecy said we would know how to kill these things when we were supposed to. And I'm thinking that's going to be when we're actually fighting them." Turning to look at Spike, she said, "We're leaving tomorrow."

            "What?" Willow frowned. "But, I'm not done yet, shouldn't we wait…"

            She shook her head. "We've waited long enough. I want this done."

            Spike nodded. "Whatever you want, pet."

            "You're just going to let her go? You don't know what you're up against! How can you be so stupid?!?" Angel leapt to his feet, closing the distance between the two in a fraction of a second. 

            He chuckled, leaning forward so their noses were less than an inch apart. "I thought you would know, no one _let's_ that girl do anything." 

            "This is ridiculous." Putting one hand on either man, she managed to pull the two apart. "You-" She pointed at Spike. "-Are going to go get whatever you need to be ready to leave tomorrow morning. And you-" Grabbing Angel's wrist, she started walking towards the door. "-Are coming with me on patrol."

            Spike wrinkled his nose. "Don't care for that plan much, love." He brushed his fingers against hers, enjoying the shiver it sent up his back. And the cough it produced in a certain Nancy-boy. 

            "We'll just do a quick sweep. I doubt there's much out there anyways," she said. Of course, she knew it wasn't the danger that was bothering him. No matter how many times she told him not to worry, he would always be wary of the first love of her life. And her spending time with him. With a smile she remembered the picture he had taped to his punching bag a few months ago. 

            Why she was smiling, he had no idea. _Probably happy she gets to spend time with the wanker. No,_ his other self argued, _she loves you. You know that. Now stop being a macho git and go pack._ Sighing, he watched the two head out the front door. "So," he looked around to the remaining people in the room. "What's Africa like this time of year?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You…you love him?"

            "Mmhmm."

            "How?"

            "Well, when a man and a woman love each other very much…"

            "Please, spare me the details."

            Buffy grinned. "He's good to me," she murmured quietly.

            "Buffy…" Angel slowed, catching her hand in his. Ignoring how quickly she pulled away, he cleared his throat. "There may have been another reason for me coming here."

            She raised her eyebrows. "And that would be…?"

            Taking a deep breath, he said, "I'm still in love with you."

            Blink. Blink. _He what?_ "Angel…"

            "I was stupid before. You do deserve the best. The very very best. And I was stupid enough to believe that I wasn't that for you."

            "But Angel-"

            "Look." He shrugged. "I know we've had our…problems. But doesn't the fact we're both here in spite of them-"

            "Angel!" She glared at him until he had quieted. "You weren't stupid. You were right. I was a different person back then. Back when I loved you." Looking deep into his eyes, she added, "I don't love you anymore, Angel. I love Spike." 

            For a long time, he said nothing. 

            "I'm sorry."

            "Don't be." Angel kept his head down, silently clenching and unclenching his fists. "Can you just…can you tell me why? What does he have that…that I don't?"

            Buffy sighed. "I don't know what it is. Maybe it's his loyalty. Maybe it's the way he never leaves, not even when I beg him to. Maybe it's just the way he loves me." She smiled softly, completely in her own world. "Maybe it's the way he looks at me, or brushes against me without realizing it. Maybe it's all of those things."

            "You love him."

            "Yup."

            "…Okay."

            She smiled.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Sodding Nancy-boy with his bloody hair that sticks straight up…" Angrily Spike threw a shirt into his duffel bag. " 'Oh look, I'm a brooding poof!' Sodding Peaches with his sodding detective agency and sodding soul with that bleeding happiness clause…" A soft giggle from his doorway cut short his impromptu rant. "And what do you want?"

            Dawn smiled. "You don't like him much, do you."

            "Not much."

            "I can tell." 

            "Well, what can I do you for." He sat down on the bed, looking up and the girl. "What do you need. I know you didn't come up here just to listen to me bitch about Dr. Forehead."

            She raised an eyebrow. "Suspicious, much? Maybe I'd rather be here than with the Worry Bunch." 

            Spike winced. "They aren't too keen about her going, are they?"

            "They aren't too keen about either of you going," she corrected him. She laughed when he rolled his eyes. "Is it so hard for you to believe they might actually care what happens to you?"

            He nodded. "Yeah, it is. I know plenty well, and so do you for that matter, that the only reason they care at all whether I live or die is because Buffy n-… because Buffy cares." Shrugging, he returned to the closet. Somehow, most of his clothes had ended up in Buffy's room. _Wonder how that happened._ "Doesn't bother me."

            "Sure."

            "Hey." He turned to glare at her. "I never asked for their worry. If they want to spend their time fretting over little old Spike, let them. I don't care."

            Dawn looked down at her lap. "You don't care if I'm worried?"

            His facial expression softened. "Didn't mean that, Bit." Stepping up to her, he took her chin in his hand. "You're the only one of the lot of them. And I'm glad for that."

            "It was hard enough loosing you once," she admitted laughingly. "I don't want to do it again."

            "You won't have to."

            "You can't promise that. I know you!" Smiling half heartedly, she attempted to imitate his accent. "You'd rather go down in the battle than run away like a git." 

            Spike tilted his head. Dawn was right. He hated to bow out of a fight. But he would never want to put these girls, his girls, through any more pain. Even if it meant running away like a git. _I do believe you've gone soft, Spike._ "Nothing'll happen, pet."

            "Nothing'll happen huh?" Walking past the door, Buffy couldn't help hearing what was obviously part of some lengthy discussion.

            "You know, sometimes people don't like it when other people listen in on their conversations," Spike joked, releasing the younger Summers girl from his grasp in exchange for the elder. After brushing his lips against hers, he pulled back. "Where's tall, dark and broody? Did you stake him?"

            "No." Angel shifted so he was visible from the doorway of the bedroom, but made no attempt to come in. Two very hostile sets of eyes prevented that, though ironically enough it was her younger sister who looked ready to tear him limb from limb.

            "I thought you were going," Dawn spat out, her nostrils flaring with anger. She'd never liked Angel. Well, okay, technically she hadn't really been there when he had lost his soul and tried to kill her but hey, she could still hold a grudge couldn't she? 

            Cautiously, he took a small step towards the trio. "I am. I just need to… talk… to someone first." As he spoke his gaze shifted to his former friend and accomplice. Emphasis on former. Right now he looked ready to bite his head off. 

            Spike rolled his eyes. "Talk, hmm? Last time I saw you we sure as hell did more than talk." Realizing his words came out a bit odd, he added, "We fought. You know, beat each other up. It was very manly."

            She chuckled. 

            "Look, are we going to do this or not?"

            Slowly he untangled his arms from around her, never breaking eye contact with his grandsire. Putting a pair of socks in the bag, he zipped it and approached him, growling, "Let's go."

            Buffy watched the two go down the stairs. "Don't kill each other!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            _"Flight 442 to Benin City, Nigeria, layovers in Boston and London, now boarding at gate 35."_

            "That's us." Buffy stood from the hard plastic chair she'd called home for the past two hours. Giles had insisted on driving them over. Which of course meant bringing Dawn and Xander and Willow along. And arriving god knows how many hours early. 

            Giles sighed, stuffing his hands in his pockets anxiously. "Now, you will call when you land, correct?"

            She nodded. "Call. Yes. But remember, the whole time thing…be prepared to be woken up at two, maybe even three in the morning." 

            "And you'll call me too, right? Remember to call me." Willow jumped at her friend, wrapping her arms around her.

            "I will. You just keep translating for me, okay?"

            "Okay."

            "Don't I get a goodbye hug?" Xander held out his arms. 

            Spike eyed the man wearily. "I don't think so, mate."

            "Well good, because I wasn't talking to you." He hugged Buffy before turning back to the vampire awkwardly. "You know, uh…"

            With a smirk he shook the whelp's hand. "Yeah."

            "Will you call me?" Dawn smiled at them, trying desperately to ignore the tiny voice at the back of her mind that reminded her she might never see them again. 

            "Yes. I will call you first," Buffy assured her. With a deep breath she grabbed her carry-on bag in one hand and Spike's duster sleeve in the other. "We'd better go now."

            He watched silently as the Scoobies bit them their fond farewells. He'd always hated goodbyes. If he'd had a choice he would have called a cab, just to avoid this particular moment. Saying goodbye. Walking away from these people that, he hated to admit, had become his family. With his characteristic smirk and a wave, he let the love of his un-life lead him onto the airplane. It was strange, but he swore he could feel her. He could feel her heart breaking just a little bit when she looked back and saw the moisture in her sister's eyes. Or maybe it was his. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hmm, that ended a bit differently than I had planned…oh well. Still good, right? There was a very specific reason that Angel/Spike conversation isn't in there…I didn't want to write it. :) I will, honestly, if you want to hear it. It'll just be a send out. I know some of you think my send out's should be in the regular story, and they will be. I'm just waiting for some new software, then I'm going to make my own fanfic site with these stories on it. The 'in-between' chapters will be there in all their glory. Be happy! 

If you want me to write Captain Peroxide vs. Dr. Forehead…review! 

If you love the story…review!

If you love the Cheese Man…review!

(Ok. That was a little random. But who doesn't love the Cheese Man, really???)           


	19. The Lion And The Lamb

AN: For anyone who cares, Captain Peroxide vs. Dr. Forehead is now up for sending. If you'd like me to send a copy your way, just indicate so in a review along with your email address. As always, a big thank you to all the readers and reviewers of this story, I couldn't do it without you guys! *tear* Alright, that's enough sappiness for one author's note, don't you think?

And now…for something totally random…

I'm a mommy! Well, of mice that is. :) I got two very adorable mice today, one of which I have named Little Bit (I couldn't resist!). Can't quite think up a name for the other girl though…if you've got any suggestions please, send them my way! 

Now, back to the actual story…

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss. 

The Lion And The Lamb

            Sighing, Jackie played nervously with the magazine in her lap. She hated flying. Really, really hated flying. She'd learned that the first time she'd crossed the Atlantic three weeks ago to visit her brother and her new sister-in-law. She'd been dreading the return flight ever since. 

            Jackie hated to fly for various reasons. For one, she was completely terrified of heights. And water. So flying high over the ocean wasn't exactly a pleasant experience for her. Also, she had this rotten luck of sitting next to complete weirdoes. Once, it had been a drunken businessman who had tried to make out with her. Another time, it had been an annoying five-year old who shrieked every time they hit a patch of turbulence. She eyed the pair sitting next to her. So far, they seemed okay. And the man wasn't so bad looking. Alright, he was a babe. At least that's what she had thought when he first stepped on the flight. She'd been delighted when he spoke, a deep voice laced with an accent similar to her own. Of course, he had come with a girl. There was always a girl, wasn't there?

            At first, she had thought them quite an odd pair. The woman, who could be no more than five foot three, had long blonde hair and was dressed in kakis and a red tank top. The man, despite his alarmingly good looks, resembled a punk reject from the eighties with his bleached blonde hair and long leather duster. Still, they were very cute. For the first few minutes after take off the woman next to her, who introduced herself as Buffy and the man whom she'd introduced with a grin as Spike, her boyfriend, had discussed England with her. Apparently she'd been there before. After that, she curled up in a little ball and promptly fell asleep against her companions shoulder. He grinned at Jackie before turning his attention to the window, which still held his attention more than an hour later. 

            Jackie smiled as Buffy hummed in her sleep. In any other situation that didn't involve the possibility of plummeting to your death, she was sure the two of them would have gotten along wonderfully. As it was she found herself grateful for such a quiet couple to spend the flight with. She was about to drift off as well when she noticed the girl shivering. Apparently Spike noticed too, for he squirmed out of his jacket and laid it over her, the expanses of leather completely engulfing her small frame. Satisfied, he went back to gazing out the window, his fingers playing absent-mindedly with a tendril of her long hair. Yes, she liked these two very much. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Xander looked at the clock for the fifth time in two minutes. "Didn't they land an hour ago? Why hasn't she called? What if the plane crashed? What if-"

            "Calm down!" Willow grabbed him by the shoulders, forcing him down into an armchair. "One of their connecting flights could have been delayed. Or maybe they're still getting their luggage. The phone could be dead."

            "I don't like this," he grumbled. "We should never have let her go."

            Willow raised an eyebrow. "She would have gone anyways, you know that. And what about Spike?"

            "What do I care if he goes and gets himself killed?"

            She rolled her eyes. "Boys."

            "What is that supposed to mean?"

            "You're always all, macho, and, 'grr!', and 'oh, I don't care if one of my friends dies.'." 

            Xander frowned, offended. "Hey! I don't do that with you…"

            "Because I'm a girl!"

            "Well, I don't do that with Giles…"

            Willow tilted her head. "Well, that's true…but still, you're all, uh, mean and stuff. To Spike." 

            "I'm not trying to kill him," he pointed out. "That's Buffy's choice and I respect her enough not to meddle, but that doesn't mean I have to like the guy."

            She shrugged. "Whatever."

            "I don't!"

            "Okay."

            Glaring at her, he stood up to resume his pacing. "I'm just worried for Buffy, that's all. If he gets himself killed, it'll hurt Buffy."

            She tried not to grin. Whether he liked it or not, her best friend had begun treating the vampire more like a Scooby with each passing day. Of course, she wasn't going to point this out any time soon. "Sure." 

            Angrily he looked at the clock. "Why hasn't she called?!?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            _"Ladies and gentlemen, we'd like you now to return to your seats and fasten your safety belts. We will be landing at Benin City Airport in just a few minutes."_

            Buffy yawned, stretching her cramped muscles. After sleeping most of the flight to London, and then the past two hours, she was wide-awake and ready to get going. With a soft smile she readjusted the long coat around her so she could get to her seatbelt. She'd woken up in London wearing it, where Spike sheepishly explained she had looked cold. She'd had it on ever since. Suppressing another yawn she looked over to see what he was doing. 

            Sound asleep, Spike looked almost childish in his innocence. She grinned at the sight of him. His head rested against the back of the seat, chin drooping down onto his chest. Without the gentle rise and fall of breath he appeared almost dead, save for the little smirk plastered on his lips. Completing the image were his arms, hanging limply by his sides. Carefully she leaned over, grabbing the two pieces of metal from either side of him and pulling them across his lap. Just as she was buckling it his eyes flew open, hand reaching out instinctively to grab at whoever had disturbed him.

            "Morning sleepy."

            He blinked several times, trying to clear his vision. "Buffy."

            "What, surprised to see me?"

            Quickly he released her hand. "No." For some reason the way she was looking at him was making him extremely uncomfortable. "What?"

            Buffy chuckled. "You're cute when you sleep."

            "You too," he teased, kissing her lightly. Hearing a disapproving throat clearing from the man next to him he pulled back. A soft giggle escaped him at the sight of her in his new duster. It was nowhere as soft or warm as his old one, but he couldn't resist it when he'd passed by it one day in the store window. And now he knew why; Buffy looked absolutely adorable wearing this jacket that was at least five sizes too big for her and trailed on the ground behind her as she walked. Besides, it was his trademark, after all. 

            Silently she watched him, trying to determine the cause of his laughter. Giving up she looked out at the clouds as they descended. A chill ran through her body as she remembered the last time she had been to this place. And how she'd left. 

            "Nervous, pet?" Looking over her shoulder at the ground beneath them, he couldn't help but wonder what she was thinking. This was Buffy, after all. It was a miracle when the girl paused for breath. Seeing her all clammed up and glum was more than a little unnerving. 

            "You might say that."

            "Anything I can do?"

            Buffy tilted her head slowly to look at him again. He was studying her intensely, concern etched on his face. "I don't know what to do," she admitted quietly. "I feel like we're going to be going out there, waiting for someone to come along and help us. I mean, we're completely defenseless. And who even knows if this 'tool' thing will work." 

            He raised an eyebrow at her skeptically.

            "Oh come on. Are you telling me you actually trust that prophecy? And what about those dreams? All of our friends basically told us this was a suicide mission."

            "Then why are we here?" Spike asked. 

            She shrugged. "Like I said. I want it done. It's only a matter of time before these things…breed or whatever, before they move on to other areas. I don't want that."

            "There's something else," he said slowly. When she looked away he knew he was right. "What aren't you telling me?"

            "If I don't do this…I'll never know." Meeting his gaze, she said, "I'll never know whether or not I can take this. If I can beat it." 

            "My crew and I would like to thank you for choosing Nigerian Airways. Please, come back and see us again. Passengers at this time may rise and exit the plane."

            Standing, he edged his way out into the small aisle. After grabbing their overhead bags he tucked an arm around her protectively. "You can," he hissed in her ear. "You…you can conquer anything. Anyone. Hell, you tamed me Slayer." Smirking impishly down at her they made their way out into the airport.  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            _BRRRING_

_            BRR-_ "Hello?? Buffy?? Is that you??"

            "Hey Dawnie." The tired voice of her sister could be heard despite the great distance, along with numerous background noises.

            "How were your flights? Have you seen any demons? What time is it over there, anyways?" Happily, Dawn plopped down on the sofa. All day she'd been waiting for this call, practically driving Kennedy nuts with her insistence to not tie up the phone line. The older Slayer had ended up going over to Giles's to talk to her girlfriend about an hour ago, leaving the anxious teen to sweat it out by herself.

            "Long, no, and I have no idea. The sun just came up, generally not a good sign." A few incomprehensible mutterings followed Buffy's words, leaving her curious. 

            "What's wrong with Spike?"

            "Oh nothing, he's throwing a hissy fit because he ran out of cigarettes." Her voice ringed with laughter. 

            "Hey!" Spike's protest, though somewhat softer, could be heard surprisingly clearly. 

            "So, what are you going to do now?"

            "Rent a car, drive a gazillion miles to Kano, kill said demons and be home for breakfast," she chirped.

            Dawn laughed. "Okay. Hey, you think I can talk to Spike?"

            "What, I'm not good enough for you anymore?"

            "Just put him on."

            "Fine." With a pout in her tone she called out, "Spike-Dawnie wants to talk to you."

            "Me? Alright…" More clearly, he said, " 'ello Nibblet."

            "Hi Spike!" She grinned happily. "Having fun?"

            "I wouldn't call being in the bleeding Sahara with no smokes fun."

            "You're in Nigeria. Not the Sahara."

            "Don't get smart."

            She giggled over the phone line. 

            "Looks like we've got to be off, pet. I'll have Buffy call you sometime later, alright?"

            "K. Bye!" Just as she was hanging up the phone, Kennedy and Willow walked through the front door.

            "Hey Dawnie," Willow greeted her. "Why was that?"

            "Buffy." 

            The red head's eyes widened. "She's okay, right?"

            Dawn nodded. "Yeah. Just called to say they landed and that they would call again sometime later."

            "Oh. Okay." Defeated, she collapsed on the sofa next to the girl. She'd been waiting for her friend to call, so of course she'd come home just when they hung up. It made perfect sense. "Did she say when?"

            "Nope." Cocking her head, she asked, "Did you get anything done over at Giles's?"

            Willow brightened up immediately. "Yeah, I did! Here." She handed her the now notorious notebook.

            After a moment of eyeing it suspiciously, she turned to the latest writings and began to read. '_The Powers were given an opportunity to set the world right again. And so righteousness, embodied in the form of a Chosen One descended onto the plains. This solution would not be permanent. The scales would balance, surely, but at any given moment could tip. A solution was proposed. The prophecy was written: Only when virtue in form blends with malevolence incarnate may the worlds rest._

_            Only when the lion lays down with the lamb may the waters still. Only when the greatest good embraces the dark, and only when the worst evil embraces the light, may the prophecy be fulfilled. _

_            The Powers grew impatient. For years they watched man cower from the demons, none among them brave enough to do anything but hate the creatures. And always, their Chosen One perished._

_            She was not created to fight. It had not been her purpose. She had been created to balance the forces, yes, and control demonic activities, yes, but she was built above all to restore the ancient balances. The first Chosen was perfect; all that was good, along with a passion for all that was bad. But man found her; chained her down with reason and nobility, told her to kill the creatures she was made, secretly, to love.' _Dawn sat gaping for a few minutes, unsure of what to say. Finally, she managed, "You got a lot done."

            "This chapter isn't as difficult as the first," she explained. 

            "You should tell Buffy when she calls again." Numbly, she stood up. _It couldn't be…_ Her thoughts drifted to the two blondes in Africa. _'Only when the lion lays down with the lamb…' _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Do you want to drive?" 

            Jumping from her trance like state, Buffy whipped her head around. "What?"

            "Do you want to drive. The car." 

            She stared at him incredulously. "Um, no. That's okay. Buffy and cars…very un-mix-y." _Now when have I said that before?_

            Spike raised an eyebrow. "You drove in Paradise."

            "Yeah. I drove from my house to Giles's. And I still managed to kill an innocent mailbox." 

            He chuckled. "I'll teach you, pet. It's not so scary." 

            "Oh yes. Me in a car…very scary." She shuddered at the thought. Why she had ever wanted to drive when she was younger was still a mystery to her.

            "You're going to have to learn someday," he pointed out. Pulling over to the side of the road, he announced, "Get out."

            Buffy shook her head viciously. "No. Uh-uh. No way." She glared at him as he walked around the car, opening her door. "You want to die before we even get there?"

            "I trust you," he murmured, leaning forward so their noses brushed. With a grin he unbuckled her and drug her out of the car.

            "Hey!" She tried to kick him, but he was holding her back to his chest so it was quite impossible. He held her tightly until she stopped squirming. "No fair," she whimpered, eyes glittering with mischief.

            Leading her around to the other side, he sat her down unceremoniously in the driver's seat. When he noticed the pout on her lips he couldn't resist; he ended up kissing her until she gasped for breath. With another light kiss he slammed the door. "Drive."

            With her pout still firmly in place Buffy restarted the car, waiting until he buckled up before pulling back out onto the road. This was definitely not a good idea. She could see it now-an elephant or something would walk out into the road, and she'd swerve, and they'd go rolling down into a ditch and be pinned underneath tons of steel and end up eating really gross bugs to stay alive and-

            "Little slow there, love." Spike nodded to the odometer. They were currently going a whooping 25 miles an hour. 

            "Slow is good," She argued.

            "No, slow is bad. Slow means we don't get to the motel in time and end up sleeping in the car with all the nice little animals."

            She sped up.

            Smirking, he stretched out in the seat comfortably. "See, it's not so scary." Looking over of course, he saw her white knuckles. And her wide eyes. And that stick-straight posture that just screamed 'oh god oh god oh god…'. He sat back up, unbuckling and sliding over next to her.

            "What are you doing!" Buffy protested as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, putting his one hand over both of hers on the wheel.

            "You want your hands further apart," he said quietly. Reaching up with his other hand he readjusted her near-death grip on the steering wheel. "And your left foot-move it over there. You aren't supposed to have it sitting on the brake like that."

            Silently, she followed Spike's directions. Already, she was feeling more confident. And his arm draped comfortably around her certainly didn't hurt things. She remembered the last time she'd come, smiling at the memory of the couch cushion. Allowing herself to tear her stare from the open road, she looked over at him. Strange, that her once enemy, turned accomplice, and eventual pain in her ass, was now the very person she wanted by her side. Needed, perhaps. Not that she'd ever admit that, of course. "So…are we there yet?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

MWAHAHAHA! Ooh, am I evil or am I evil? *grin* 

Do you want the send out chapter?

Do you like the story?

Do you want me to get on with it so you can read the finale?

Do you have a suggestion for mice names?

Do you ever wonder why Xander has his sink conveniently filled with water?

(I love being random. Tehe.)

Review! *puppy dog eyes* Please?


	20. Any Other Night

AN: Sorry for the slowness, I'm having real problems staging these last chapters. For all your patience, hopefully they'll be better than if I rushed through them haphazardly.

The other night, we had a thunderstorm…and by some cruel fate of luck our computer went bizerk and wasn't working…Lucky for me it decided to randomly start again that afternoon. Whew! From now on, I'm going to keep a bazillion back up CDs of all my stories and graphics… :) With that catastrophe averted I suppose I should get on with the story. After all, I only have three chapters left to clue you guys into all that is going on…and to lead you to my third installment of the After The End series. By the by, the muse is back :) but feeling a little woozy…I'm sure review would make it feel heaps better…*wink wink*

Disclaimer: All characters belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss. Well, except for Julian, Tabitha and Timmy. They belong to NBC. :)

Any Other Night

            For hours, they drove in silence, taking turns when one looked about to nod off. The sun rose slowly in the sky, illuminating the sparse land on either side of the highway. She took the wheel once it was high above them, claiming to want the experience. In truth, she just wanted something to do. A bored Buffy is definitely a bad Buffy, this she'd learned the hard time more than once. Every now and then she would cast a quick glance at the figure beside her. He appeared to be asleep again, his head lolled over to rest against the window. A smirk tugged at her lips. _Guess he does trust me._ The light dancing on his features was the current object of her curiosity, however. It still seemed amazing that he wasn't harmed by it. And more so, he seemed to be completely comfortable in it. With a start she realized she had never questioned his transformation. At first, she had pressed her ear against his chest in hopes of some wacky miracle-all she had found was a deafening quiet. But once he had explained he was still a vampire-just new and improved, he'd joked-she'd let it go. Now, it was driving her nuts. _I'll have to ask Giles to look into it once we get home. _

_If we get home. _

_Don't do that,_ Buffy scolded herself mentally. _It's not going to do us any good for me to start worrying now._

_But what if you're right?_ The voice in her head questioned. _After all, the last time you came out here you went home in a wheelchair. And that was two Slayers against one demon. Kind of sad, really._

Shivering, she glanced over again. Why was she even doing this? Now, when things were finally starting to make sense? For the first time in her life, she was really happy. She was a normal girl with a normal life, living in a normal house with a normal sister and…Spike. Alright. Maybe her life wasn't completely normal. She could grade on a curve, though. _Things were going good, dammit. Why do you always have to go looking for trouble?_

The truth was, she didn't know. She felt compelled to come out here, like it was a calling or something. She couldn't help it. Something was drawing her to this place, to either fight in her finest hour or to fall in her last. 

_*** "William…"_

_Spike looked around. Alright. He was still in the car. Buffy was driving. But wait-he was in the backseat. And the girl was sitting next to him. His eyes widened when he saw himself still sitting in the passenger seat. "What the hell is going on?"_

_The girl smiled sadly. "William, you know why I'm here."_

_He shook his head fiercely. "No. Not yet. I can't go now."_

_"It is not up to you to decide." She turned away from him to look out the window. "The time is coming, William. You remember our deal."_

_"Can't you help us?" The words tasted bitter on his tongue. He hated begging. However, it seemed the only option left. "You saved Buffy before. Can't you help us now?"_

_She smiled again, wider. Still averting her gaze, she said, "Everything you need to win the upcoming battle you already possess."_

_"I don't understand! In order to win this battle, I need some 'one tool crafted before the time of steel'. At least that's what the Watcher said. Are you saying that I have it? Or that I'm going to find it?"_

_"Think, William. In time, you will know. All of the answers you seek are before you."***_

"Spike?"

_*** "What do you mean? What is it that I already possess?"_

_"You are…"_

_"I am what?"***_

"Spike?"

*** She was gone within a blink of an eye. He sat, stunned. Back in the front seat, he could hear Buffy calling to him.

_"Spike?"_

_"Yes?"_

_She smiled kindly. "You are."***_

"Spike!"

*** "What does that mean?" Frustrated, he grabbed her by the shoulder. "What am I?"

_Buffy kept driving. Not looking up from the road, she said, "My heart."_

_Okay. This was a little too familiar. He tried to coax more out of her. "Your heart?"***_

"Spike!!!"

*** She nodded. "You are my heart."

_"You are my soul," he murmured. "And together-"_

_"We are One."***_

"SPIKE!"

He sat up with a jerk. Whipping his head around, he saw the concerned girl next to him. "Buffy? What is it?"

"You were asleep. I couldn't wake you up," she said sheepishly. "You kept saying things…"

Stretching his arms up above his head, he reached for the map. "How long was I asleep, love?"

Buffy shrugged. "I don't know. Half an hour, maybe?"

"So that would put us…two hours from Zaria."

"Yup. Wait-I thought we were staying in Kano."

It was his turn to shrug. "Thought you might like to stay there, it's only 90 miles or so from where we're headed."

"Ah. Okay."

"Something wrong?"

Mentally, she slapped herself in the forehead. "Oh god, I feel like such an idiot!"

Spike eyed her curiously. "Alright…"

"I didn't bring any blood." She chewed her lower lip nervously. "Maybe we could find you a butcher shop…"

Okay. Confessions were definitely in order. _Confession? More like a bloody declaration…_ "Pet, I haven't exactly been honest with you of late."

Her eyes widened drastically. "Oh." Images of dead bodies lining the streets flashed through her mind. _Don't be an idiot Buffy, this is Spike. He'd never do that…_

Chuckling, he laid a gentle hand on her thigh. "It's not what you think, Buff. Actually, I…I haven't drunk the red stuff since…" _Since I drank from you,_ he thought. Hmm. He'd never even noticed.

"Since when? Are we talking a few days of blood fasting or…?" 

"I haven't drunk…in a while. Lord knows I've tried. It just tastes…" Slowly he opened and closed his fist in the air, as if hoping to catch the lost word between his fingers. 

"Like blood?" She suggested. 

Glaring, he tightened his grip on her leg. He was momentarily distracted when she sped up from his touch. Trying to stop grinning, he said, "Don't get cheeky. It tastes…fouled. Bad."

"Like blood," she said again. Before he could do anything she added, "I know, it is the vampire drink of choice, must have been delicious. But you don't drink it anymore?"

He shook his head.

Mystified, she checked the odometer. _Huh. Don't remember going 75 miles an hour…_ Slowing down quickly, she tried to blow off the mind-boggling information. "Well, that solves that problem."

Somehow, he wasn't quite so sure. But for now, they had bigger problems. Namely bigger, hoppier, eviler problems. The whole Spike Is A Vampire Who Goes In The Sun And Hates The Taste Of Blood thing would just have to wait.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Julian…"

            "What is it, Tabitha?"

            "I'm…I'm pregnant."

            "Dawnie, what are you watching?" Xander frowned as she walked through the living room.

            Dawn grinned. "Passions. It's really good."

            Willow wrinkled her nose. "I've never liked that show. Tabitha's all 'ooh, I' a bad witch who fights on the side of darkness!'. Yeah, right. I bet she can't even call the quarters." 

            "It's funny-well, except when Timmy died. That was really sad. But I like it!" Actually, Dawn was semi-obligated to be watching the soap opera. She'd promised Spike before he'd left that she would tape his favorite show while he was away. Besides, they had been watching it together for weeks now, and she'd become addicted to the ever twisting-not to mention ridiculous-plotline. 

            Willow threw her hands up in mock surrender. "Whatever floats your boat." 

            "I think I have something," Giles called out. "Here. It mentions an ancient prophecy and the Betugk Swetuk."

            "Good job Giles!" The red head rushed over, reading over his shoulder. " 'Betugk Swetuk, an ancient breed of demon confined to inner Earth back in the dark ages. Unkillable except by the one tool, they may only be released by a conjuring or by an evil that predates them.' That means-"

            "The First must have released the demons in preparation for the final battle." Giles removed his glasses, whipping imaginary dust from the lenses. 

            "Or for after," Kennedy murmured. 

            He nodded. "These beings were made solely for destroying. They have no other purpose."

            As a commercial for toothpaste filled the uncomfortable silence, Dawn stood to approach the table. "Buffy's fought big bads before. This isn't any different. Is it?"

            "I don't know. It says 'The demons have no known weaknesses. Only the one tool, prophesized in a scripture lost upon it's writing, can destroy them.'"

            Willow took a quick glance at the papers laid out in front of her. "But it says here 'it will only be discovered at the time of it's beckoning'. So even if we did have it, we wouldn't know we had it until we had to use it."

            He took a moment to absorb what she had said. "True, all true. But all it really means is we're flying blind."

            "So that's it? We're just going to leave our friends to die?" Xander jumped off the kitchen counter where he had been sitting to pace nervously around the table. "They should never have gone out there in the first place!"

            Giles shook his head. "They had to go. There was nothing else to be done. It is stated in the books that the tool will be revealed when, and only when, it is needed. Until then all we can do is hope for the best."

            "I hope they're okay," Dawn said.

            Willow walked over to her, wrapping an arm around the teen. "I'm sure they are. In fact, I bet they're having a great time. You know how they get, killing demons and all."

            _BRRRING_

"Hello?" 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Yes…really? What does it say? …Are you sure?" Buffy scribbled the lines of text on a motel notepad, trying to ignore the curious looks Spike was sending her from the other side of the room. "Is there any way to tell in advance…oh. Okay… Yeah, I'll tell him."

            "Tell me what?" Walking around the bed, he sat down next to her. "What is there to tell me?"

            She glared at him as she continued writing. "I got it. Thanks. We'll call again once we're there…alright. Bye." 

            "What was that about?" Spike asked, trying to catch a glance at the paper she was holding.

            Handing him the new part of the prophecy to read, she said, "Giles said to tell you that Dawn said hi." She waited as he read.

            '_She was made, secretly, to love.' What the…?_ "And this?" he waved the paper in front of her face. 

            "The latest part of the translation," she explained. 

            "Right." He put the paper back on the nightstand. Kicking off his boots, he collapsed back on the comforter. 

            Buffy frowned slightly. He'd been like this, edgy, ever since they'd checked in a half hour ago. _No, it was before that. After he told you about the blood._ Try as she might she couldn't fight the feeling that Spike was hiding something from her. His behavior now certainly wasn't helping. Putting her shoes next to his, she laid down with her head resting against his chest. "What's wrong?"

            His eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Why does anything have to be wrong, pet?"

            She turned to look at him. "Don't. I know there's something you're not telling me."

            _Yeah. There's a whole bunch I'm not telling you. _Frustrated, he admitted quietly, "This…this might be our last night together." True in two ways. They'd either die together or he'd be taken from her. In either scenario, it meant leaving. And he so desperately wanted to stay. 

            Her expression softened. _Is that what you're scared of?_ "It isn't," she said determinedly. 

            "You don't know that. You can't say for sure we'll both be walking out of that battle." Spike knew good and well how the next day would go. They would wake up early; drive the 90 miles to Kano. Call their friends. Say goodbye. Then go off to the fight. And even if, by some miracle, they found this 'tool' and used it and survived, he would still have to leave. Unless Buffy said… _You know her. You know she won't. _For the first time, that single fact burned a hole through his un-beating heart. 

            "I don't know. And I'm scared." Closing her eyes, she inhaled deeply. And was momentarily drowning in the scent of him. "But can't just forget about tomorrow? Can't we just pretend tonight is like any other night?"

            _Any other night…_ He wrapped his arms around her, holding her close against himself. Maybe, just maybe, he could make things okay for her. Even if it was just for one night. Shoving all of his inhibitions to the back of his mind he kissed her, calming her fears with a simple brush of his lips.

            When they pulled away Buffy sat up, swinging her leg over him so she was sitting on top of him. Leaning forward she kissed him again, letting her fingers trail up under his shirt. Fireworks went off in her mind as their tongues collided, saying with actions what they never could with words. Breaking the kiss momentarily she breathed, "I love you."

            He kissed the end of her nose gently. "Love you. Always." Taking both of her hands in his he repeated, "You know that, don't you? I will always love you. No matter what."

            She nodded. "No matter what." 

            "Every second. Every way. Every night. I love you," he murmured against her soft skin. 

            Inhaling sharply, she shifted until their eyes met. "Love me tonight?" The words came out so softly she wondered if he'd even heard. Her doubt was quickly extinguished when he came up to kiss her, rolling her over so she was pinned to the mattress. When she opened her eyes he was smiling at her. Before she could say anything they were kissing again, and her worries about the day ahead of them were forgotten. They might die tomorrow, true. But they still had tonight.

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Please, review! I'll bake you cookies!


	21. With You

AN: I'm sorry! I've been a bad, bad writer. But I got called in to work at a day camp last week… and then I stayed at a friend's house… and then my house lost power for an entire day… and then I realized I had no clue how to wrap up for the finale. :) 

And now…the end is near…and I'm going to drive you all mad…with my cliffhangers… Tehe. Wow. I really have no useful comments. Do you think it would be too much to shoot for 200 reviews by the end of this story? Wouldn't you like to help? *grin* I can't thank everyone enough for actually bothering to read this story, much less take time out of your busy, busy lives (har har) to comment on it. Ooh, and before I forget *hands out cookies to all reviewers* here you go! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: All characters belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss.

With You

            He woke before the sun rose. And for over an hour, in the quiet of their hotel room, he watched her sleep. Curled up against his chest like a kitten. He listened to her breathing, a smile breaking upon his face as she mewed softly in her sleep. She was dreaming. _Are you dreaming of me, love?_ Spike wished he could stay there forever. He would watch her until the end of time with absolutely no complaints, content only to see the slight rise and fall in his goddess that kept her alive. Why was fate so cruel, to take him away? _"I'm destined for her…"_ Would they have let him back if he was not meant for her? Was this some sort of cosmic joke, a payback of sorts to a vampire who had killed so many? His gaze returned to her. Her eyelids fluttered for a moment, before she settled back in his embrace. No. This was no punishment. He'd do it again, if given the chance. Anything just to be with her. "I'll always be with you," he murmured softly, brushing his lips against her cheek. "Even if you don't know it." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            _*** "Spike?" _

_            " 'm here, pet." _

_            "Where are we?" Buffy looked around. All she saw was white._

_            Stepping up to her, he cupped her face in his palm. "You are my soul."_

_            She frowned. 'I know this…' "And I am your heart?"_

_            "Yes." He smiled at her. "We are One."_

_            "One?"_

_            Before her eyes, Spike transformed into a girl bathed in light. "One. You are the way. Our chosen. Our tool. You are your own salvation."_

_            "What?" Buffy frowned. "I don't understand. Where's Spike?"_

_            The girl smiled kindly. "You will be going soon. Remember what I said."***_

Buffy opened her eyes, squinting at the harsh sunlight that was streaming in through the open window. Stretching her arms out, she noticed a lack of vampire in the bed beside her. A quick glance confirmed the fact that Spike was nowhere to be found. "Spike?"

            He stuck his head out of the bathroom. "You're awake, then."

            "Yup. I'm all with the waking." Letting out a soft moan she sat up, grabbing the covers in an attempt to cover herself. In the end, all it earned her was a raised eyebrow. "Don't like to wake up alone," she muttered. When she stuck out her lower lip in a mock pout she knew she had him. He walked over quickly in all his freshly showered towel covered goodness, grinning at her. Before she could come up with some witty comment he'd grabbed her arm, pulling her close in a heart-stopping kiss before they fell back onto the bed. 

            After a long, particularly sweet moment, he drew back reluctantly to look her hard in the eye. "I love you." 

            Grinning, she kissed him again. "Believe me when I say the feeling is mutual." 

            "I like it more when you say it," Spike teased. Leaning in he kissed her neck, moving up until he was nibbling her ear.

            She gasped as he hit a particularly sensitive spot. Somehow, she could feel him smirking. "Love you. I love you."

            "That's better." 

            Buffy swatted at him with a pillow. "You're in a good mood this morning."

            "What can I say? I like to kill things." He felt his heart skip a metaphorical beat as her lips split in another gut wrenching grin. _Anything just for a smile…_

            "We should be going," she murmured, though she made no attempt to wriggle out from under him. He felt almost warm, pressed up against her in all the right places. She had never felt safer. She had never felt, even for a moment, more complete than she did just then, lying on a bed in a cheap motel with her honey. And it was killing her to think they would have to leave the safety of each other's arms even for a moment, to go face the unknown. Even worse that she couldn't tell him that. She couldn't find the words. _I hope you know. I hope you can tell how much I really care._

            Nuzzling her neck with his nose, he silently thanked whoever was up there for giving him this. This moment. This girl. Even if it wasn't forever. His arms tightened around her subconsciously at the thought. He knew his Buffy. She had been hurt too many times, suffered too many infidelities from her closest companions to survive another harsh blow. In his gut he knew; she couldn't live without him. She loved him just as desperately as he loved her. She just didn't know it. _Will you know once I'm gone? Will you realize only when it is too late that I'm for you?_ He inhaled deeply, wallowing in the fragrance he already knew by heart. There was no time to think such things now. Lightly pressing his lips to her skin one last time he sat up. "Lead the way, Goldilocks."  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            "Are you okay?"

            Dawn's head snapped up from her desk. Sheepishly, she looked at the seat to her left. "Course I'm okay. Why wouldn't I be okay?"

            "Because school ended ten minutes ago."

            "It did?" She blushed fiercely as he nodded. "Why didn't you wake me up?"

            Jake looked around the room awkwardly. "You hum in your sleep. Did you know that?" Trying desperately to change the subject, he added, "You must have been having a good dream."

            Deciding to put the thought of him watching her in her sleep, which was creating butterflies in her stomach, in the back of her mind, she shrugged. "Not really." _But only in the sense that I was watching Buffy and Spike deliver a sound serving of whoop-ass to a bunch of evil demon thingies. _Personally, she wound have rather had a dream make out session or something… Unbeknownst to her, a smirk overtook her features.

            "Oh." Standing up, he shifted his back from one arm to the other as he looked down at her. "You know, um, since the buses have already left and all-"

            "The buses left? Shit!" 

            "-As I was saying," He continued, unable to suppress his grin at her uncharacteristic outburst, "Maybe you could, you know. Ride with me." 

            She smiled shyly. "Uh, sure. Thanks." Quickly she gathered her books, following him out into the hallway.

            "So… what were you dreaming about, anyway?" 

            Dawn's eyebrows shot up.

            "I mean, if you want to tell me. Which you don't have to. You know what, forget I even said anything." Embarrassed, he looked down at his feet. _Good job, doofus. She probably thinks you have some sort of speech impediment now._

            _Are rambling guys usually this adorable?_ "No, it's okay. It was…about my sister." _Why am I even telling him this?_ Embarrassed, she looked down at her feet. 

            "Really?" Tentatively, he glanced up at her. 

            "Yeah. She's…out of town, on business. I guess…I guess I'm worried about her or something." The words rushed out of her mouth before she had time to actually consider them. _Great. He's going to think I'm some sort of worrywart now._

            "Why are you worried?" He asked quickly. For some reason it particularly irked him that she was worrying about anything. _Get a grip, dude._

            Thinking fast, she said, "Oh, she's a…" _Better to just tell the truth, he'll find out eventually._ "A personal trainer."

            "You're worried about your sister because she's a personal trainer?"

            _Brilliant._ "No. I mean. She's flying overseas." Seeing the blank look on his face she added, "I know how much she hates flying." Mentally, she slapped herself in the forehead. 

            "Ah. Okay. I understand." He smiled, looking back once again to his trusty tennis shoes. "Must be nice." 

            She frowned. "Nice?"

            _Shit._ "No. I didn't mean. Nice. I meant…" Biting his tongue, he ran a hand through his hair. "It must be nice to be able to worry about her."

            "What?" 

            "Okay. That didn't come out right." 

            "Nope." 

            It took him a few seconds to realize she was laughing at him. "Stop laughing!"

            Chuckling, Dawn watched him become even more flustered. "Okay. I'm good."

            Glaring at her teasingly, he continued, "What I meant was it must be nice to have someone like that. Someone to go home to." 

            Luckily, they arrived at the car. She had never been more grateful for something to do with her hands. Once they were both in, and buckled, she turned to face him. "You don't?"

            Jake shrugged, tearing his eyes from the road for a second to look at her. "I mean. I guess I do. I've got a mom and a dad, if that's what you mean."

            "And I don't," she murmured quietly.

            His eyes widened as he realized what he had implied. "I didn't mean it like that, Dawn. Your sister, Buffy, right?"

            She nodded.

            "You and her, from what I've heard, at least, are close. Really close. I'd kill to have that."

            "You don't?" She asked slowly, afraid she'd just crossed the line from concerned maybe-girlfriend to downright nosy kid.

            He shook his head. "I don't know. I should be grateful, right? I'm sure tons of kids have parents worse than mine. So what if mom prefers her bourbon's company to mine? Who cares that father dearest stays out most nights with one of his 'clients'? I can deal." 

            Dawn kept her attention on her hands folded neatly in her lap, trying to think of something to say. Instead, she ended up opening and closing her mouth, looking for the entire world like a fish out of water.

            "Didn't mean to make you feel bad," he said quickly as he observed her reaction. "Sorry. Shutting up now."

            The car pulled up to the curb. Inside, she could see Willow sitting at her spot at the kitchen table. "Jake?"

            "Yeah?"

            Leaning over, she kissed him gently. After the initial shock of it wore off she felt him kiss her back, his lips caressing hers softly. When they separated she let out a little gasp, smiling at the bewildered look on his face.

            "You kissed me," he blurted out. _Smooth. Real smooth._

            Her smile widened. "Yup. Is that okay?"

            His head bobbed up and down quickly, causing her to giggle. "Why?"

            "Do I have to have a reason?"

            "No…"

            "Because I do."

            "…Okay…"

            Trying to maintain a serious expression, she said, "You're nice."

            Jake cocked his head. "Um, thanks?"

            "I'm not done!" She waited until she had his full attention once again. "You're nice even though you apparently have a really shitty home life. And I think that says something."

            He beamed. 

            "I should go in now." With another small smile she unbuckled, sliding out of the car quickly. 

            Before she got to the door, he called out, "Dawn!"

            She whipped around. "What?"

            "You're nice too!" 

            The car was gone before she could think of a clever comeback. _Oh well, it doesn't matter._ Happily, she turned and continued towards the house. _Wait till I tell Sp-_ She stopped dead in her tracks. Her dream came rushing back to her. _Spike. Buffy. Oh crap._ She rushed into the house.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            _KANO-3 MILES_

            "We're almost there."

            "Mmhmm."

            "Buffy?"

            "Huh?" She looked over at him.

            "You okay?"

            "Course."

            "That's a no."

            "Hey!"

            Spike smirked. "It's okay, love. You can be scared. I won't tell anyone."

            Sighing, she slumped over, leaning her head against his shoulder. "Promise?"

            "I promise with all my undead heart."

            She smiled. "With all your heart…" A frown crossed her face as she struggled to remember something. "Your heart." 

            He glanced at her warily. "What?"

            "Oh, nothing. Something from a dream." 

            Inhaling sharply, he repeated, "A dream."

            "Yeah." She sat up, shrugging. "I don't remember much of it." _LIE! LIE! _"Something about you…and a heart…" _I am your heart! I am your heart! Earth to Buffy, this is your subconscious; you remember the entire dream! In fact, you've had it more than once. Now stop with the stupid bimbo act and tell him!_ Jumping, she exclaimed, "I am your heart?"

            Spike's eyes widened. "You are my heart. I am your soul."

            Her jaw dropped. "You had it too?"

            "More than once. I figured it was just-"

            "-Nonsense dream babble."

            "Yeah." He tilted his head to study her. _A coincidence? Having the same dream? I'm sure it was different…somehow…_"Weird."

            _It couldn't have meant anything…besides; I doubt he's dreaming about strange girls. I hope he's not dreaming about strange girls. _Deciding to leave that bit of her dream out, she nodded in agreement. "It's up there on the strange scale."

            However curious he was, the subject was completely forgotten as he spied another sigh. "Um, Buffy?"

            "What?"

            "We're here."

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Sorry if it's a little shorter than normal… I don't really feel like writing the last phone conversation…maybe I'll write it as a send out… if you think I should tell me! Otherwise I don't think I'll put it in the final chapter, it would take up too much space. 

Do you like where I'm going?

Have you figured out yet where I'm going?

Do you want to give me suggestions as to where to go?

Do you think it's a little odd Spike remembered Faith's lines from This Year's Girl after three years (word for word…more than a little creepy)?

Do you want to review?

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Even if I try and hurry up with the final chapter and (possible) send out? 

*insert frantic gestures to submit review button here* 

:)


	22. One

AN: I am not a happy Evaline. Evaline's TV decided to stop working. Which means Evaline can't watch Buffy. Which makes Evaline very, very grumpy. I think that's enough third person for one AN. About the send out… Well I decided to put the conversation in this chapter so it wouldn't really have worked… I just realized that it was too critical. Everyone deserves to read it. 

Finally, the finale! I bet you've just been so worked up about this; your stomach's all fluttery and you've probably gone right past this… oh well. If you are reading, you have more self-control than I do. :) Also, I hope I didn't confuse anyone by inserting the prophecy (in bold) in full in between scenes. I felt you needed to read the whole thing one more time. Also, towards the very, very, _very _end of the story I have some quotes, which are from Buffy and a book called Fearless, respectfully. So don't sue me. :) Thank you to everyone who's been reading and reviewing!!! I'll be starting the next story, Heart and Soul, as soon as I can. Be sure to go check it out! Thanks again!

Disclaimer: All characters (w/exceptions) belong to UPN, Mutant Enemy, and the all-powerful Joss.

One

****

Into each time before one was sent to save the world. One to balance the forces of light and of dark. Among them, there will be one unlike the rest. The One. She is the way to maintaining the balance for which they have fought. She will be beyond goodness or evil. To save her, the champion of heart will rise. Dark will lighten and the world will be anew as it never was.

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            "Hello?"

            _Dawn._ "Hey Dawnie."

            "Buffy!"

            "Yep, it's me." 

            The line was silent for several seconds. "So. You're in Kano."

            "We're here, yes." She shifted uncomfortably, finally hopping off the hood of the car to pace around it.

            "Having fun?"

            "Of course. I even got to drive part of the way," she declared proudly.

            "Poor Spike."

            "Hey!"

            "So…"

            She sighed. "What is it, Dawn."

            "I…I love you." 

            "Don't do that!" Biting her lip, she added, "We'll be fine. I'll be fine."

            Her sister's voice wavered. "I hope so."

            "I'm not doing this. I didn't call you to say goodbye," Buffy stated harshly.

            "Then don't. Come home."

            "You know I can't."

            Dawn sighed. 

            "Maybe you should put me on speaker phone or something." She knew her friends. Each one would want to say something to her. A moment later she heard a soft 'click'. "Hello?"

            "Hey Buffster." Xander's voice rang with false enthusiasm that made her cringe.

            "Hi," Willow chirped.

            "How are you, Buffy?" Giles asked.

            "Okay. We're okay. We're ready to fight."

            "Buffy…" She heard him conferring with the others. "Be careful."

            "Carefulness. Check."

            He cleared his throat. "When you get there, look around for the weapon. It should be revealed to you when you need it."

            "Okay." For some reason, his words struck her as odd. _Oh well._

            "We all just wanted to say…" Willow now. She sounded so…sad. "We wanted to say good… luck. Good luck."

            _Darn you._ Struggling with unshed tears, she glanced over at Spike. Silent Spike. When she'd asked him if he'd wanted to talk to them he'd just shaken his head, mumbling under his breath about how he hated goodbyes. She didn't blame him. "Thanks. I'll pass the message along."

            "Tell Spike hi for me, okay?" 

            She smiled at her sister's request. "I will."

            "So…"

            "We should be going," she said quickly.

            "Oh. Well…bye." Dawn's voice wavered again.

            "Bye," The rest of the gang said quietly.

            She hung up without a word, staring hard at the ground. _You aren't going to cry, dammit. Don't even think about it. _"Bye."

            Spike stepped up to her cautiously. "Are you okay, Buffy?" 

            "I just said goodbye to my best friends," she choked out. "I said goodbye to my sister. Do you think I'm okay?" hiding her face in his chest she tried to control herself. "I want it over. I want it done with."

            Wrapping his arms around her, he buried his face in her hair. With a deep breath he said, "Let's go, then."

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**He will give himself to save them all. There will be a great battle, in which he will perish. The forces of evil will bide their time under the Earth, waiting for the time when they might rise again. The One and her army will be spread far and wide. They will face their own evils as they would-alone. Only together can the balance be achieved.**

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            Dawn looked around the sullen room as she turned off the phone. "Are they going to be okay?" She asked quietly. 

            Giles flashed her a comforting smile. "Of course."

            "How do you know?"

            "I… don't," he said slowly. 

            "You don't."

            "No." His lips twitched slightly at that. 

            "It's Buffy," Xander said after a moment. "And the way I see it, nothing can stop her. Not apocalypse, not death, not anything." 

            "I wish we were there." 

            He turned to look at Willow. "But we aren't supposed to be. Whatever happens, it's their fight. Not ours."

            Whipping her head up, she glared at him. "And how are they any more prepared than Faith and Buffy were?"

            He shrugged. "Got me."

            "Maybe…" Giles thought a moment before proceeding. "Maybe they weren't supposed to go. Or they weren't supposed to win, at least. I think it's perfectly clear, from what we've seen, that it is Buffy and Spike who must face this force. It is possible they themselves are the only ones who will be able to come out of the battle the victors."

            "I hope so," Dawn murmured. "Otherwise, they're as good as dead."

            Willow wrung her hands nervously. "I'm gonna, um, go work on the translation."

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**Alone will they go towards small victories. Alone shall they die. Without completion, each shall spiral down into the fiery pits as evil grows impatient and shows itself. Risen again, he will fight for one dear. The armies of the dark will keep hidden the answer, keep hidden the key to their being. They shall rise up in their numbers and be spread to keep apart the forces. As long as they remain unbalanced, so shall the armies succeed in their quests. Dark is held as long as light remains; without her it devours. And the world will become hell. She will fight, but she will fall. Without heart, she will fall.**

**The key to achieving this balance is within. The answer they search for is before them. It has always been; crafted before any known thing. But it will only be discovered at the time of it's beckoning.**

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            Rocks. Trees. Grass. Okay. Buffy anxiously scanned their surroundings as they walked through the savannah. "Do you see anything?"

            "Not yet," he replied briskly. Clenching and unclenching his fists, he watched a bird fly overhead. 

            "Soon, William."

            Spike frowned. "Buffy?"

            "Yeah?"

            "Did you hear that?"

            "Hear what?"

            "…Nothing." With a sigh he turned his attention back to the space in front of him. "So. What exactly should I be looking for."

            She looked over at him incredulously. "You have to be kidding."

            "I know it's a kangaroo demon and all that-"

            "Betugk Swetuk."

            "-…Right." For some reason, the fact she actually knew what the demons were called, and more importantly how to pronounce their name, struck him as funny.  "What I mean is, how does it attack. Does is stalk you from behind or just kind of mosey up to you or…"

            She shrugged. "I don't know. I guess it sort of…pounced."

            Spike raised his eyebrows. "Pounced?"

            "Shut up."

He grinned.  "Um, Buffy?"

She glanced over at him. "What?"

"I, um. You know." He waited a few moments until it was quite clear that she didn't. Sighing, he murmured, "I love you."

Buffy skidded to a halt. "What the hell!?"

"Okay, not quite the reaction I was expecting…"

"Spike…" Angrily, she rolled her eyes. "Even you? Even you think we're not going to make it out of here alive?"

His eyes widened. "No! I mean, yes! I mean, see, I do. I do think we'll make it out." Or at least you will… He tried again. "We are going to win. I know it."

"Then why did you say that," she asked quietly. 

"Because I thought you should know."

Awww… Cocking her head, she smiled slightly. "I do."

Spike smirked. "Good. Now all we have to do is find those kangaroos."

"And the weapon," she added, watching the horizon for any movement. 

"Don't worry about that, love. According to your Watcher it'll come to us."

She sighed. "I hope so."

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**It was created long ago to keep the dimensions in balance. Before the times of right and wrong. The world was neither good nor bad; it simply was. There was no concept of evil or righteousness; such things did not exist. The entirety of it all was placed into this one energy. So basic was its purpose: to store all the pure and un-pure things within itself, and keep within the lands peace. But it could not last forever. The Powers, so concerned with containing these powerful forces, failed to notice when they could no longer be contained. It burst so suddenly there was no time to correct what had been done. The worst of all evils and the greatest of all goods were released to wreck havoc upon our worlds. And that they did. For centuries untold demons roamed the Earth freely, while the divine took to the skies.**

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            "Don't worry about that, love. According to your Watcher it'll come to us."

            "I hope so."

            You need not worry, she thought. Everything will take care of itself. Indeed, everything was turning out quite nicely. Except for the very minor problem of Buffy Summers. 

The Slayer was more of a challenge than she had originally thought. Of course, it was a miracle she had gotten as far as she was. For years the poor girl had kept a protective bubble around herself, not allowing anyone in too close. She had been scared for so long. At first she'd thought it was ironic that the Chosen One, who fought against so many unnamable things, was absolutely terrified of being close with someone. And the disaster that was The One Of Soul certainly didn't help that. But she was so right for it… So it was back to the drawing board. And she realized it wasn't a soul that the girl needed-it was a heart.

Desperately she searched until a brutal killer with the heart of a poet struck her. She tried everything to get them together. Sexy clubs, cheating partners, quirky similarities, seemingly random alliances. Nothing worked. Eventually they had to create an entire human organization just to get the right players back onto the field. What a hassle. But for years she tended them, mussing up the young witch's spell and bringing forth hell gods to keep her mission together. They were perfect. The greatest good with a passion for the dark side, and the worst evil with a huge soft spot. They were it. They were what they had been waiting for all of these years.

They were One.

And now that damn stubborn girl was going to mess it all up.

After the battle with the first, the Powers had been convinced it had been a fluke. She had thought it had been a fluke. They had been good, but it wouldn't have worked. After all, he'd died hadn't he? They gave up. But then he came to her, looking so incredibly miserable. And he'd said those chilling words. I'm destined for her… So back he went. One last shot. And if it didn't work out this time, then it never would. 

The Girl watched her charges dutifully as they trekked across the barren land. Soon, their weapon would be revealed. Or maybe they already knew. Soon, William. Soon. 

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**The Powers were given an opportunity to set the world right again. And so righteousness, embodied in the form of a Chosen One descended onto the plains. This solution would not be permanent. The scales would balance, surely, but at any given moment could tip. A solution was proposed. The prophecy was written: Only when virtue in form blends with malevolence incarnate may the worlds rest.**

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            "Against the darn…against the dork…against the door?"

            Xander raised an eyebrow at his friend. "Huh?"

            "Oh. It's the prophecy," Willow explained. "I'm having problems with a word. Dank…damp…dole?"

            "As in pineapple?"

            She glared at him. "Very funny. I'm trying to help Buffy!"

            "By translating a prophecy about an ancient pineapple?"

            "Dark!" She exclaimed. "It's dark!"

            He frowned. "What's dark?"

            "The word, silly. It's dark."

            "Ah." He leaned over to read what she had. " 'For years the Chosen fought against the dark'. Hey, do you think they mean Buffy?"

            "I might be able to find that out if you stopped asking questions," she snapped.

            With a sigh he stood up, opting to sit next to the slightly less-cranky teenager on the sofa. "Hey Dawnie."

            "Don't mind Willow," Dawn said quickly. "She's just. You know. Nervous."

            "I think we'll all be nervous until this is over." Chewing on a hangnail he looked around. "I gotta get out of here. Wanna come get doughnuts with me?"

            She smiled. "Okay."

            Giles watched the two of them exit the house. Shaking his head, he went back to his text. After a few minutes he slammed it shut in pure frustration. "Bloody hell. I can't find a damned thing."

            Willow shot him an amused expression. It was a rare day when Rupert Giles lost his temper, never mind the swearing. "I don't exactly think there's a lot to find at this point. We've kind of got everything we're going to get on the Betugks. Ooh!" Happily she scribbled a few more words down on the page.

            "You seem to be having a bit of luck," he commented.

            "I think I found something on Buffy!" Twirling her pencil around on her fingers, she read. " 'For years the Chosen One fought against the dark forces. The Powers feared that their balance would never be restored. But finally, there was a girl unlike the rest.'"

            He took of his glasses, carefully cleaning them with his handkerchief. "It certainly sounds like our Buffy."

            "What should I do?" Willow asked anxiously. 

            Taking a moment to think, he stood from the table. "Keep translating. If-When they call again, we can inform them of the new material."

            "Okay."

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Only when the lion lays down with the lamb may the waters still. Only when the greatest good embraces the dark, and only when the worst evil embraces the light, may the prophecy be fulfilled.

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             A movement in the grass caused him to slow his pace. Unwinding his fingers from hers he squinted, trying to get a better look. 

            "What?" Buffy frowned. "What do you see."

            "Not sure, love." His eyes roamed around until another shift in the distance caught his attention. With a target now in site, he took a few cautious steps. 

            "Spike…" Biting her tongue she tried to see what he was watching so fixedly. A lump rose in her throat as she recognized the hunched creature lurking in the underbrush. "There," she hissed.

            "I see it." Spike balled his hands into fists, waiting for the demon to make its move. 

            She rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet. "So, how do you want to do this? Run at them together, or draw them out and take them one-on-one?"

            "I wasn't thinking so much on strategy but on just plain killing the thing," he retorted. 

            Rolling her eyes, she did a quick check behind them. "Why do you have to get testy right before the big fights?"

            Despite the tense situation, he smiled. "Like that, do you?"

            "No."

            His smile widened. "Oh come on. I know you, Slayer." Almost playfully he brushed against her. "I know you like it rough."

            Buffy felt a smirk rising to her lips. She tried desperately to keep her mind on more important things. Like staying alive, for example. "Maybe we could talk about this later? When we aren't in a live or die situation, perhaps?"

            "When aren't we in a live or die situation, love?" 

            A chuckle escaped her. "Aren't we supposed to be finding some all-powerful weaponry right about now?"

            "Right." Immediately his tone turned to a more serious note. Of course, this image was completely destroyed when he held a hand up to his forehead visor-style, pursed his lips and started looking around intently. Hearing her snort, he turned to look at her. Keeping the demon in eyesight, of course. _God, she is beautiful. _The hot African sun had made her cheeks a rosy pink, and her skin gleam with little beads of sweat. Her hair, which she had pulled back from her face a-la-Slayer, had also wilted in the heat, little wisps curling against her face. And he was mesmerized by the way her loose T-shirt blew in the breeze, revealing the strap of the tight-fitting tank top she wore underneath. He silently thanked whatever genius had invented Spandex. His thoughts were rudely interrupted when their demon friend decided to come out of hiding. Snapping his head around he caught a glimpse of it charging towards them.

            "Showtime," Buffy proclaimed meekly.

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The Powers grew impatient. For years they watched man cower from the demons, none among them brave enough to do anything but hate the creatures. And always, their Chosen One perished.

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            When he first laid eyes on the thing coming at them, he hadn't been scared. In fact, he'd been exhilarated. Until he noticed it was going straight towards his girl. Horrified, he watched as it reared up, hopping like an insane kangaroo on steroids. With a roar he leapt in front of her, yelling at her to get back. It did him little good. The demon swung at him, knocking him of his feet and out of its way. "Buffy!"

            Before she had time to react it was upon her, hacking at her with those damned claws. She managed to get a decent kick to its head before it slashed her across the stomach, blood splattering everywhere as she flew backwards. Coming at her again it nailed her arm, causing her to cry out in pain before she tripped, smashing her head against a boulder.

            He'd never felt anger like this. Even as a heartless killer, he'd never had this blood-boiling rage flowing through him. But that's what happens when you see the love of your un-life knocked bleeding and unconscious. On his feet once more, he pounced on the demon. Holding onto it's back like a madman as it howled and bucked he slid into game face, biting into the thick hide with an animal's abandon. It's blood poured thick and dark into his mouth, reminding him more of tar than the life giving fluid that it was. He bit again and again, feeling its arteries explode beneath his teeth. After a minute of struggling the demon staggered, falling to the ground with a snarl. He jumped off quickly, noting that it was still very much alive and angry, only weakened for the moment by the injury. Luckily, a moment was all he needed.

            Quickly he kneeled by her side. Her eyes were closed, blood trickling down the side of her face. Spike reached over, trying to brush her hair away from her eyes. She would want him to do that. He needed to brush back her hair. Near hysterics, he swiped frantically at the wisps he had admired mere minutes before. His fingers brushed her forehead. When this happened, he felt a small shock. Of course, that was nothing close to what he felt next.

            Before she even opened her eyes her fingers rubbed gently against the back of his hand. When her eyes did open she was met by an astounded look. "Hi."

            He blinked. He blinked several times. He let his hands explore the smooth skin of her arm. Her stomach. A laugh escaped him that probably sounded more like an insanely evil cackle. 

            "Spike?" She sat up, watching him warily. "What happened?" Her eyes shifted to the limp body lying behind him. "Did you kill it?"

            "No," he gasped in between chortles. "Couldn't. Kill it." Taking several deep breaths, he stared deep into her eyes. "What was that?"

            "That?"

            He gestured to her stomach. Her silky, untouched stomach. How he wanted to kiss it. "That. You were hurt. And then…"

            _Oh shit. _"No time for questions now," she hissed. Gesturing to the two beings heading their way, she stood. "First, we fight."

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            **She was not created to fight. It had not been her purpose. She had been created to balance the forces, yes, and control demonic activities, yes, but she was built above all to restore the ancient balances. The first Chosen was perfect; all that was good, along with a passion for all that was bad. But man found her; chained her down with reason and nobility, told her to kill the creatures she was made, secretly, to love.**

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            Picking up a rock Buffy braced herself for the impending attack. When she looked over, she noticed Spike wasn't fairing much better; he was currently wielding what looked to be a… gourd? Before she could even consider this to be funny she was faced with the first of now three very pissed off kangaroos. _Why the hell didn't we bring weapons?_ She thought to herself as she dodged an attack. Of course, she knew why. There was _supposed_ to be a weapon here for them already. And it was _supposed _to kill these damned things. Unfortunately, this almighty 'one tool' was nowhere in sight. Angrily she threw her rock, momentarily pleased when it crashed into the face of one of her opponents.

            He flipped over the demon, ignoring the new cut he now wore across his chest from the bold move. Looking over his shoulder he watched her kick and spin, a flurry of arms and legs if there ever was one. _Like hell if she gets the first kill._ He whacked his beastie over the head with his weapon. And grimaced as it exploded in a messy goo all over his shirt. "Aw fuck," he muttered as he dove wildly out of the way of a now goo-covered claw. When he stood he noted that Buffy was standing a few feet away, facing the other direction. Actually, he could feel it. Feel her. _That's a little-…_ _Ow…_ Make that less than a foot away now. Considering he'd been slammed backwards by the force of that goo-covered, foot-and-a-half long claw sliding through him like a hot knife through butter. A glance behind him confirmed it; he was now an Official Un-Dead Shih Kabob.

            Duck. Jump. Twist. Bend. Buffy moved quickly, trying to get close enough to the thing to kill it without getting sliced to pieces in the process. Suddenly, she noticed there were no noises coming from her counterpart. Before she had time to figure out what was wrong she was shoved-not sliced, she noted-backwards, stumbling before she crashed into none other than Spike. Momentarily, she wondered why Spike had what felt like a very sharp, well, spike sticking out of his back, which she could feel now imbedded at least an inch or two into her own soft flesh._ Wait a minute…_Long, spike-y thing sticking out of Spike. _Oh crap._  For a moment, everything seemed to slow down. The demons, which had been moving too fast for her to hardly keep track of, seemed suspended in motion. And all she heard was the soft beating of her own heart. She gasped as she felt a thick liquid against her wound, dripping down her back. Blood. Her blood. _Spike's blood._ It mingled with her own, surprisingly cold against her skin. A sudden burst of pure white light, so bright it was nearly blinding, flashed across the land. She closed her eyes.

            _"A One tool …"_

_            "You are my heart…"_

_            "Crafted before the time of steel."_

_            "You are my soul…"_

_            "One. You are the way."_

_"And together…"_

_" Our chosen. Our tool."_

_"We are One." _

_"You are your own salvation."_

Buffy's eyes flew open. "It's us," she whispered.

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For years the Chosen One fought against the dark forces. The Powers feared that their balance would never be restored. But finally, there was a girl unlike the rest.

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            "Buffy?" He turned his head as much as he could to try and catch a glimpse of her. 

            Sliding off the claw with the small _slurp _that comes along with removing any large weapon from your body, she whirled around. "It's us!" She cried out.

            "Us?"

            "We're it! We're that Tool thing!" For emphasis, she turned and punched the demon that had been sneaking up behind her square in the jaw. The thing toppled over, landing with a wonderful _thud_ on the hard ground.

            _Now isn't this interesting…_Grabbing a hold on his captor's long ears, he jerked its head to the side. As it fell to the ground he managed to free himself from its arm, all the time admiring its now broken neck. Looking down, he admired his hole-free stomach. _A bloke could get used to this…_"Fancy that."

            Buffy grinned. 

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 Deep inside, she possessed the need for darkness that had been beaten out of the other Chosen Ones. The need of darkness that would allow her to love what others despised.

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            With newfound hope he tackled the remaining creature, wrestling it to the ground with strength he never knew he had. Like it's predecessor, it received a lovely, if not out of date, broken neck. Dusting off his hands he stood up, watching her finish off her unconscious buddy. "So. That's it then."

            "Not by far," she said with another crazy grin. At his confused expression she gestured to the dozen or more bodies emerging from the underbrush. Like a crazy person, _or the sort of person who knows she can kill these things, _she launched herself at the nearest one.

            Watching her fight like that was making him dizzy. And a little bit horny. He shook his head quickly, trying to focus. But even when he turned away, he could still feel her fighting. Feel her smiling. As he literally punched a hole through one opponent's chest, crushing its heart between his fingers, all he could hear was _her_ excited heartbeat. As he tore open another's throat, all he could taste was _her_ blood, a flavor sampled for just a moment yet permanently imbedded in his mouth. It was like… It was like…

            It was like Heaven.

            _Oh, shit._

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As a test to confirm their theories, they sent forth a vampire to court her. She loved him desperately. But they were not it. They did not have the right blend. They were soul and soul, deadly to their enemies but still lacking the most basic principle.

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            Buffy spun through the cluster of legs and claws, wielding nothing more than her trusted rock and a confident look. She had never felt strength this great. This… consuming. Yes. It was consuming her. Positively devouring her. Turning her already freakishly strong muscles and quick reflexes into something more. Something better. Something that could whoop the ass of anything it encountered.

Spin. Kick. Twirl. Punch. Kill. Destroy. Annihilate. Each movement seemed fluid. Each movement felt graceful. And each movement knocked down another one of the bad guys. _These guys aren't so tough,_ she thought smugly as she tore the claw off of one, looking at it approvingly before using it to slice open another. _I'll have to bring some of these things home. Giles would love 'em._

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Heart.

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_No. I'm still here. I'm still Spike. I've got arms, I've got legs, I've got great hair. Get a grip!_ Try as he might to move, the master vampire seemed to be frozen where he stood. Taking a few deep breaths, he managed to reach out and grab a fleeing demon by the throat, crushing it instantly in his oddly strong grip. _See. I'm helping. I'm no wanker._ Unfortunately, his feet had decided to stay put. And the kangaroos had basically figured out enough to stay far, far away from him. And Buffy. He glanced over at her. _Buffy… No! I'm here! I'm. Staying. HERE!!!_

_"William…"_

As the head of her last victim rolled clear of its body, she noticed Spike standing still. Spike looking at her in the oddest fashion. Spike feeling like he was going to throw up. _Wait a minute…_She could feel what he felt. She could feel the bile rising in the back of his mouth. She could feel the blood on his hands. She could feel his regret. His sorrow. She could feel the pain lacing through her as the sharp edge of the demon's claw was drug across his throat, as she watched in pure and total horror. 

"_SPIKE_!" 

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 **Both the soul of the Chosen… **

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Oh god… Oh god oh god oh god no you stupid idiot get up you're scaring the crap out of me why are you just laying there you stupid stupid vampire god I love you so much please don't leave me I can't live without you you have to be okay you're fine now please just sit up and say some stupid cocky Spike thing and make everything alright why are your eyes closed why aren't you moving it's a bad joke a bad horrible filthy joke and any second now you're going to realize you're a frickin' super hero and you can't be hurt you just can't be hurt god no you're just faking but why won't you just open your eyes I need to see your eyes blue like the sea and so amazing I loose myself every time I look at them-

 Barely looking up, she pummeled Spike's attacker until it was no more than a puddle of mush. 

-I need your eyes I need your eyebrows I need your eyelids and your eyelashes and you're nose and mouth and lips and tongue sweet tongue tastes like buffalo wings and cigarettes so good yummy need your impossibly perfect cheekbones god those cheekbones you could cut diamond with those things I swear they're awesome and very very British like tea only better looking and can't forget your hair smells like crap like a science lab but I don't mind it's soft and fluffy when you don't put that gooey stuff in it and I need it so badly you couldn't imagine-

Carefully she bent over his limp figure. "Spike?" She whimpered.

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**…and the heart of the Champion…**

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_*** _He'd been watching Buffy. He hadn't seen the demon, that one last demon come up behind him. Stupid. So stupid. He hadn't even noticed until his blood was spilling on the ground. He'd been too absorbed in watching her. Too caught up in her to really see anything. Stupid. Careless. He mentally kicked himself. Couldn't watch her now. _Can't watch her with my bleeding eyes closed._ No. He couldn't open his eyes. Couldn't feel them. Knew he was still in there somewhere. He wasn't dead. Not quite yet. Buried inside his own mind, yes, but not quite back where he'd started. Though he was greeted by that eerie whiteness once again.

            And her.

            "William."

            "No," he murmured. He would not leave. He could not leave. He _shouldn't _have to leave, dammit! Why was he always being torn away from the one person he really loved? Why was there always distance between them? Why was there no fairytale ending? Why did life suck so much, to pull two people together and rip them apart like some cheap teenage angst story?!? 

He loved her. More than words could say. More than art or music could possibly describe. More than anyone could possibly dream. He had loved her with every fiber of his being.

You didn't need a soul to love. You didn't need to be some Nancy-boy with stupid hair and a chip on your shoulder to care for another person. Care for them so much you sometimes thought you'd gone crazy. As he'd once said, 'love isn't brains. It's blood'. 'Love', he had read somewhere, 'was more than blind. It was deaf and dumb, too. It was cationic. It was vegetative'. It was stupid for a vampire to love a Slayer. He knew that. And still he loved her. Because he knew, deep down, he was the only person in forever that was made, specifically, to be with her. And only her. ****

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**…are needed to restore the balance.**

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             "Spike?!?" Lifting his limp head from the ground, she settled it gently in her lap. _Spike oh god you have to be okay…_Looking at his neck, she winced. _No. _The cut was long and ugly, and deep too. _It doesn't look too bad, Spike. I can fix it, Spike. I can make you all better, Spike. _Quickly she brushed her hand against his cheek, remembering what a simple touch had done earlier. Nothing. She cautiously placed her fingers alongside the torn skin. Still nothing. _No…_She never even noticed she was crying until her tears splashed down on his lifeless face. 

            "No," she whispered, leaning down until she was lying next to him in the dirt. Burying her face in his bloodstained T-shirt, she howled in agony. "NO!" One arm still draped over Spike, she beat the ground beside her with each cry. Finally she collapsed, sobbing uncontrollably and holding on to him for dear life. If she could just hold on to him, maybe he wouldn't really be gone. If she just held on, maybe he'd wake up. If she could just hold him…

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            **Only they can bring peace.**

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            Buffy lay there for a good fifteen minutes before she could even lift her head. It couldn't be. It couldn't be that the one person who knew the real her was gone. The one person she'd ever truly loved. The only person. The only person, her vampire, her Spike, who was absolutely perfect for her. He couldn't be gone. He just couldn't. She looked up at his stilled face. It looked like he was sleeping. He never breathed when he slept. And he always slept so perfectly still. But he didn't usually have dried blood caked on his skin either. He didn't usually have a strange blue color creeping over him. He had never felt so cold. He had never seemed so… human. 

            She let herself run her fingers through his hair, which had been tousled during the fight. It was still soft. It made her cry harder. 

            Sliding up so she lay face to face with him, she wound her fingers through his. Trying to ignore how limp his were. How dead. Instead she concentrated on his face. His lovely face. _You can't be gone, dammit! I love you! I…I need you._ She placed a tender kiss on his lips. "I love you," she murmured against his cheek. "Did I ever tell you? Did I ever tell you how much I love you?"

            _Too late now._ Spike was gone. Spike was dead. Spike had gone on to another place. And he would never be coming back.

            "Don't leave me." She kissed him lightly again. Running her hand along the side of his face, she said, "I need you."

            Numbly, she stood up. With a last glance, she turned and walked away. She couldn't do this. She couldn't live without him. He'd crushed her the first time he'd left. And now… Now she was no more than an empty shell. A hull. A body, waiting for someone to come along and end its misery. "I need you, Spike," she said so quietly she could barely hear herself. "I need you here with me. Why did you leave me? I can't do this without you." Slowly, she trudged off into the distance. It really didn't matter where she was going. Nothing mattered.

            Spike was dead. And nothing she ever did would bring him back.

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            **Only their passion, their strength, their sheer need of one another can unlock the long ago destroyed force that is One.**

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            The sun was so warm. Out in the savannah, everything was stilled. Everything was silent. No crickets chirped. No birds sang. The land was utterly tranquil. And still the sun's rays beat down. 

            Silence. It surrounded him. Surrounded him and blinded him. And all he could hear was the soft _thud-thump, thud-thump_ of his own heart. 

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**They are the world's last hope. **

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If you have any questions or comments, please review. I'll take it as a personal insult if you don't.

And fear not, loyal Spuffy fans-why would I have a third story if our favorite character was not around to partake in it?

Go check out Heart and Soul! And thanks again!

                                     3 Evaline


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